In a new poll, 77% of Texans say it has gotten harder to afford groceries over the last year, primarily because the cost of food is increasing more quickly than their income.
That’s up 4% from the last time this survey was conducted in 2023.
No Kid Hungry Texas, which works to end childhood hunger, released the findings Tuesday. Mia Medina, the nonprofit's senior program manager, said families with school-aged children are being especially hard hit.
“More than half of public school families, about 51%, reported signs of food insecurity in the past 12 months due to cost,” she said. “In some households the pantry might be completely bare, while in others mom might be skipping meals so that the kids can eat.”
No Kid Hungry Texas commissioned Change Research to conduct the survey in late July. More than 1,100 people participated, about half of them parents.
The poll found 60% of families with kids in K-12 public schools said they had to decide between spending money on food or another essential over the last 12 months. More than a third of public school families, for example, said they had to choose whether to pay for groceries or a utility bill.
The higher cost of food is also taking a toll on families’ mental health. Sixty-one percent of parents of school-aged children reported that they are more stressed out about their ability to afford nutritious food for their households than at this time last year.
Families with household incomes below $50,000 are making especially hard decisions at the grocery store. More than half said they bought less protein and produce because it was too expensive. Nearly two-thirds said they bought less healthy food because it was cheaper.
Medina said one resource low-income families can count on for nutritious food for their children is school meals.
“We know that more than half of low-income households rely on free and reduced meals to stretch their food budgets,” she said.
Ryan Mikolaycik, the executive director of food service and warehouse operations for Austin ISD, pointed out school meals must meet federal nutrition standards.
“A lot of the products that are created for schools are lower in sodium, lower in fat [and] lower in sugar,” he said.
Within Austin ISD, just over 50% of students are eligible for free and reduced-price meals. Mikolaycik said during the last school year, the district served 6.5 million lunches and more than 4.5 million of those went to students eligible for free and reduced-price meals.
“So, our meal program that we offer plays a vital role for these families,” he said.
Nearly all the survey respondents said school meals should be free for students who need them and that ending childhood hunger should be a bipartisan effort.
Medina said she is hopeful that Texas lawmakers will maintain and expand programs that reduce food insecurity during the legislative session that begins in January, including an initiative that allows students who qualify for reduced-price meals to eat breakfast for free.
She said the nonprofit is also advocating for the implementation of Summer EBT, a new nationwide program that provided eligible families with $120 per child to buy groceries while school was out.
Texas was one of 12 states that did not participate in the Summer EBT program this year. Texas officials previously told KUT the state was not able to participate this year because the program was rolled out after the 2023 regular legislative session had ended.
Copyright 2024 KUT 90.5