Thursday, 4:30 PM
Report: Hunger doubled in Bay State in three years
By April Simpson, Globe Staff
An advocacy group warned legislators today that hunger has spiked as they presented a study that found that the number of Massachusetts residents going without food has more than doubled the last three years.
Project Bread found that the percentage of hungry Bay State residents has surged to 18 percent from 8 percent in the last three years. The numbers were part of the group's annual Hunger in Massachusetts report, which it released today after presenting the findings in a PowerPoint presentation at the State House.
"Hunger in Massachusetts is not cause by food shortages," said Andrew Schiff, assistant director of Project Bread. "We have plenty of food for everyone."
The group found that hunger is caused by poverty and the high cost of living in Massachusetts. To stop the growing problem, Project Bread made four recommendations to legislators and their aides.
First, the group urged lawmakers to endorse free, healthy breakfasts in all schools, a move that advocates say has also helped boost MCAS scores. They suggested that health care providers screen all patients for signs of hunger, which can cause preventable diseases.
Project Bread also recommended that officials work to streamline the complicated application process for public assistance and food stamps to make it easier for people to seek help. They also suggested that elected officials build coalitions at the community level to fight hunger and poverty.
