Hunger

With COVID-19, world hunger has been affecting 12% of people globally. From 2019 to 2020 the number of unnourished people grew by an estimated 161 million not only due to COVID but also by conflict and climate change. Another contribution to the rise in hunger is weather events, which can alter food availability and access to people in need. 

Hunger around the world has hit a mind-blowing 927 million people, who are in need of food, water, and shelter. If we continue on this path more than 1 billion people will be in need of food by 2028 due to COVID, climate change, and conflict. 

Hunger affects every continent around the world but it mostly affects Africa. In addition to hardships brought on by COVID, Africa also faces a lack of funds, environmental issues, and governmental conflict. Africa has an estimated 226 million hungry people. That number seems to be growing exponentially. The main country in Africa that is affected the most is Sahara. It has an estimated population of 2.5 million with 1 in 4 hungry and in need of supplies.

Other countries that are significantly affected by hunger are Sierre Leone, Timor-Leste, Haiti, Liberia, Madagascar, Chad, Central African Republic, Yemen, and Somalia (as of 2021). These countries are in extreme poverty, in need of clean water, a stable financial government, and a clean environment. Countries surrounded by water are at higher risk of the effects of climate change because sea life is less likely to be able to survive, meaning the population cannot obtain food that they traditionally live off of. 

If you're looking for ways to help, Zero Hunger is an organization that has been giving out meals for more than 40 years now. COVID has made it extremely difficult for them to help provide meals to those in need. Right now it seems to be impossible with over 927 million people in need. 

Hunger in Austin, Texas has gotten much worse since COVID and many more people have been in need of food and clean water since the onset. Keep Austin Fed and many other local food banks have been trying to help Austin but since there are so many people in need, all of these local food banks have been having trouble keeping everyone fed. The CTFB (Central Texas Food Bank) saw an estimated 338,000 individuals before COVID but now there are over 550,000 people hungry in Austin (1 in 5 residents).

Over the last 3 years, hunger in Austin has risen to a mind-blowing 300,000 residents. The Austin Empty Bowl Project has been feeding over 700 kids every day, and not only helping in Austin but schools all over the country. The AEBP has been on the rise and more and more people have been going there every day, now seeing over 1.1k people. The AEBP gave 7,272 meals to schools in need all over the country in 2018-2019 and now they are giving over 13k meals to the schools in need.

Over 18% of Austin's population is facing food insecurity which is just over 180,000 people.  Meals on Wheels is another community-funded meal provider, delivering hot meals to clients daily. Volunteers began distributing frozen meals and shelf-stable food items to clients every other week. Now Meals on Wheels has changed their operations to also help prevent the spread of disease in addition to providing meals. 

Before COVID in 2018-2019 hunger was a significant issue and it affected hundreds of thousands of Austin residents, particularly those in poverty and not having equal opportunities to others. Even prior to COVID Austin faced an estimated 12% of the population in need of food. When COVID hit, hunger in Austin grew by an estimated 60,000 and is still on the rise, with more and more civilians in need of food to sustain their day-to-day needs.