Texas families are struggling under rising food costs, according to a new poll released by No Kid Hungry Texas.
Half of Texas families surveyed said at least one member of their household skips meals or eats less because of food costs. Advocates warn food insecurity could worsen as Congress’ restrictions on food assistance programs such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) go into effect.
No Kid Hungry Texas Director Stacie Sanchez told KERA News that in previous polls parents might have stopped buying specific types of foods that can be expensive, such as meat, but the large number of parents skipping meals is new.
“Parents are having to make difficult trade-offs,” she said. “They are having to make really hard choices between paying the electric bill or providing nutritious food.”
More than 80% of respondents said the cost of food is rising faster than their income, and some are using solutions that could make things worse in the future.
The poll found about 40% of families were taking on debt to cover the cost of food through credit and “buy now, pay later” services such as Afterpay or Klarna to cover necessities.
“We saw folks having to take on second jobs or join the gig economy,” Sanchez told KERA News. “Texans are dealing with and experiencing these issues every day. We experience the highest food insecurity rate in the nation and that’s showing up.”
Last year, the organization’s poll found a growing number of families reported difficulty maintaining nutritious diets without resources, and that the deficiencies were harming their physical and mental health. This year, the poll shows several factors making that problem even worse, Sanchez told KERA News.
Historic inflation, rising gas prices, higher utility bills and other factors are causing more than three-quarters of families to choose between food and other essentials.
“We want to make sure this perfect storm does not turn into something that is just absolutely devastating for Texas,” Sanchez said. “If you’re [lower or middle class], you are probably experiencing this in some way or some place in your life, and the most vulnerable among us, seniors and children, are the kind of people who are unfortunately being punished by all this.”
However, the SNAP program has faced devastating funding cuts over the past year, along with narrowed eligibility criteria.”
The most recent state data from Texas, from June, shows the state’s SNAP participation has decreased by more than 315,000 children since the federal tax and spending bill that made sweeping changes to social assistance programs was signed into law last year, according to analysis by the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.
There are several programs Texas could utilize to pull federal funding down to the state, but the state hasn’t been participating. These include the Summer EBT (SUN Bucks) program, which Gov. Greg Abbott opted out of, foregoing $450 million in federal funds.
“In a state like ours, it’s not necessarily an issue of capacity,” Sanchez told KERA News. “There’s enough food for everyone. Scarcity isn’t the issue here. It’s political will. We want to make sure our elected officials know this is a top priority to Texans.”
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