In its December 2022 report, the Arkansas Governor’s Food Desert Working Group identified that 62 of the state’s 75 counties have food deserts and used an anonymous UCA student as one of its faces of hunger. 

The report, “Addressing Food Access in Arkansas,” illustrates food insecurity and food access problems in Arkansas and provides policy solutions and recommendations from benefactors like Gov. Asa Hutchinson.

According to the report, Arkansas’ percentage of food insecurity is higher than the national average of roughly 10.2%.

By the numbers, 14.6% of Arkansas’ population is food-insecure. Arkansas has a total population of 3,021,293 and a food-insecure population of 444,130.

Faulkner County’s food-insecurity rate of 14.3% was on par with the state average, with a population of 124,545 and a food-insecure population of 17,810.

Food deserts create a barrier to fresh food, contributing to food inaccessibility.

In its report, the group defines a food desert as a place where “residents must travel more than one mile in an urban setting or more than 10 miles in a rural setting to obtain a selection of fresh, nutritious food.”

It furthers its working definition with the one used by the Annie E. Casey Foundation; it states food deserts are “disproportionately found in high-poverty areas,” and that they “create extra everyday hurdles that can make it harder for kids, families, and communities to grow strong and healthy.”

The report cited access to food as a way to avoid “chronic conditions that require treatment and consume resources.” Conditions like obesity, high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease, diabetes and cancer. 

As part of its research, the group conducted in-person focus groups throughout the state, studying consumers, providers and commercial grocers separately.

Alongside the findings of these focus groups, it featured faces of food insecurity. A UCA student, whose name was changed to preserve anonymity, struggled to pay for food after his other expenses.

The report said, “Paul is a sophomore at the University of Central Arkansas. Paul comes from a middle-class family who is able to pay for his college education through savings and his parent’s salaries. However, they are not able to cover his living expenses, including Paul’s weekly grocery bill.”

The report continues, “Paul works a part-time job, but there are many weeks when he does not have enough money to buy groceries after paying for rent and utilities. Because his family makes too much money to qualify for any government assistance, Paul cannot buy food during these weeks and has to do without.”

Programs like UCA’s Bear Essentials Food Pantry work to alleviate issues such as food insecurity in the student population. The service, available since 2014, received attention late last semester from online posts detailing the need for donations.

Many events hosted at UCA benefit the Bear Essentials Pantry, like the 2023 MLK Prayer Breakfast, which encouraged its 200 guests to donate monetary and physical donations to the program. 

The pantry has limited hours, but it has connections to other local food banks for students who need more help than it can give. 

Arkansas Foodbank distributed almost 2 million meals in Faulkner County in 2021, or about 2,271,389 lbs. of food.

The group found major obstacles for food accessibility in the state were difficulties getting government benefits, grocery stores going out of business and Arkansans lacking transportation and broadband access.

Bridging the gap between residents and grocery stores through delivery services is an effective aid in accessing food, but broadband is required to make it happen.

Alongside its findings, the group recommended the state appoint a “designated food-access” liaison within the governor’s office and establish “a legislative subcommittee on food access.”

The group proposed tax incentives, loan programs and more grant funding to encourage the opening of grocery stores in affected areas.

The group’s final round of recommendations centered on improving existing benefit programs such as the Women, Infants and Children program and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. 

Former Gov. Asa Hutchinson said the group’s work was important to the entire state. 

“The recommendations put forward today by this diverse working group on food insecurity offer a blueprint to all levels of government, business, community leaders, non-profits, foundations, and more.”

The report can be found at https://arhungeralliance.org/governors-food-desert-working-group/.