header-logo
Facebook Instagram Linkedin
Find Help
Donate Now
Facebook Instagram Linkedin
header-logo

Learn About Hunger

Hunger In Our Communities

In our local communities, many working families, seniors on fixed incomes, and households with children are stretched by rising housing, utility and grocery costs, creating hard choices between food and other essentials.

Food pantries in our area are experiencing a new normal of sustained, elevated demand, and as the need grows, organizations like ours must secure more food while absorbing higher operating costs including fuel, refrigeration, and facility expenses just to keep shelves stocked. Our emphasis on providing healthier options adds a further challenge: fresh produce, dairy, and protein are more expensive and require reliable cold-chain capacity. In recent months, reductions in SNAP benefits and significant increases in grocery costs have intensified this need, driving more families to our pantry than ever before.

What Does it Mean to be Hungry?

Food insecurity is defined as a lack of consistent access to enough food for every person in a household to live an active, healthy life.
Hunger is more than a missed meal. It is the ongoing stress of not knowing whether there will be enough food tomorrow, next week, or at the end of the month. For families living with food insecurity, that uncertainty is constant.
  • Hunger may force a mother to give up her meals so her children can eat.
  • Hunger can mean that a senior chooses to pay for their medications instead of buying groceries.
  • Hunger affects those who work and just don’t earn enough to make ends meet every month.
That hunger exists in your local neighborhoods. Food Bank of CENC data shows that food insecurity remains a significant challenge to Pender County which has a 15% (1 in 7) food insecurity rate and Onslow County, which has a 16% (1 in 6) food insecurity rate.

What Causes Food Insecurity?

Many of our neighbors struggle to meet their basic needs. Lay-offs at work, unexpected car maintenance, health issues or an accident can suddenly force a family or senior to choose between buying food and paying bills. Some neighbors are working several jobs and still are unable to make ends meet. Lack of affordable housing and rising costs are factors in this struggle.

What are the Effects of Food Insecurity?

  • Serious health complications, especially when people facing hunger are forced to choose between spending money on food and medicine or medical care
  • Damage to a child’s ability to learn and grow
  • Loss of independence for seniors who rely on food access to stay in their homes
  • Reduced ability for adults to focus at work and keep their jobs
Scroll to Top