By Shaquille Blackstock, Staff Writer

Published in print Apr. 1, 2015

In 2009, a study from the Food Research and Action Center showed that Greensboro, N.C. ranks the second most food insecure city in the country.

According to the North Carolina Association of Feeding America Food Banks, between 2010-2014, North Carolina consistently made the top-10 list for states with the highest percentage of citizens experiencing food insecurity. 

North Carolinian children under the age of 18 are living in one of the ten worst states for their age demographic, with the N.C. Association of Feeding America Food Banks projecting over one in four— that’s 26.7 percent— of minors struggle with food insecurity.

Furthermore, a number of North Carolina’s cities have some of the highest rates of food insecurity in the United States, with Asheville, High Point, Winston-Salem and Greensboro topping the charts.

The Association’s data doesn’t just stop there, though.

81 percent of households in North Carolina that receive food assistance aren’t certain where they’ll get their next meal.

36 percent of North Carolina’s food pantries are forced to turn people away due to shortages in food donations.

73 percent of North Carolinian households served by food banks had to choose between buying food or paying for healthcare and medicine, while 75 percent had to choose between paying for food or heating their homes.

The Carolinian sat down to discuss food insecurity in Greensboro, and more specifically at UNC-Greensboro with Emily Saine, assistant to the director of the Wesley-Luther Campus Ministries, which aids UNCG’s campus pantry.

Saine said about UNCG’s campus pantry, “The goal of the Campus Food Pantry is to make sure the university—just this located plot of land within the city—is able to support itself and not add to the overall hunger problem in Greensboro. This campus alone supports thousands, after all. We believe and want to make sure that UNCG can feed itself.”

According to Saine, surveys conducted by UNCG revealed 22 percent of the student population has experienced food insecurity, or gone without food for an extended period of time. Additionally, 8 percent of the student population has suffered homelessness, or inadequate shelter.

This percentage measures out to about 1,200— perhaps more.

Such a sizable percentage of the student population highlights the massive workload that campus programs have to face in confronting this issue of food insecurity at UNCG. Campus Kitchen is one such program; it is made up of a group of students who take extra food from the UNCG cafeteria to those in need.

Saine put an emphasis on service to the community, saying, “The community of Greensboro has a huge problem on its hands that can only be rectified through service.”

Wesley-Luther Campus Ministries provides the community with hands-on service, including a three-day service retreat for volunteers at the Second Harvest Food Bank.

The Second Harvest Food Bank is one of the largest of its kind, serving eighteen counties in North Carolina. It gives out multiple tons of food a day, and in today’s stormy economic climate, the contributions can be hard to come by.

In addition to food and perishable items, the Food Bank also gives out baby formula and diapers to families.

In light of such a stark issue, and how it effects the UNCG campus, Saines emphasized that it was important for the public to know more about the Wesley-Luther mission on campus. Saines said the student body has been instrumental in helping her and her colleagues with their cause.

“It’s just been unbelievable…the peer groups and offices that come together to post about food drives, and help get the word out,” Saines said, “Advertising this information to the public is instrumental in generating new volunteers, and providing food.”

She continued, saying, “Half of our contributions come from staff and the student body. We have even started a campus garden to produce vegetables and other organic goods for food insecure students.”

Saines explained that discussing food insecurity can be a sensitive topic, especially on a college campus: “Wesley Lutheran is not quite officially affiliated with the university. This issue is particularly tough to talk about, because it’s not something you want to broadcast too much. It can have an adverse effect on the university’s reputation, and we do not want that to negatively affect something like student enrollment.”

“Our university,” she continued, “is actually one of the most acceptable, in relation to financial aid and helping those who might not otherwise be able to afford tuition to get through college, more so than many other colleges. That just goes to show that this issue extends much deeper than the surface.”