Using the Food Stress Index for Emergency Food Assistance: An Australian Case Series Analysis during the COVID-19 Pandemic and Natural Disasters (original) (raw)
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Health & Social Care in the Community
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Current Developments in Nutrition, 2021
Background The onset of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic increased demand for emergency food assistance and has caused operational shifts in the emergency food system. Objective This research explored how the initial phase of the COVID-19 pandemic influenced the food supply of 2 food pantries. Methods A case study approach was applied to collect data during the initial phase of the COVID-19 pandemic. Food supply data were collected weekly at 2 food pantries in southwest Montana for 17 wk in 2020. Surveys and interviews were conducted with food pantry clients and staff, respectively. Descriptive statistics and inferential statistics were applied to analyze quantitative data. Food supply data were analyzed using the Healthy Eating Index (HEI)-2015, NOVA system, and Unprocessed Pantry Project (UP3) Framework. Thematic analysis was applied to qualitative data. Results The food boxes collected between the 2 food pantries (n = 43) had a mean (± SD) total HEI-2015 score of ...
Sustainability, 2022
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BMJ Nutrition, Prevention & Health, 2020
BackgroundThis paper describes the impact of COVID-19 during the first month of containment measures on organisations involved in the emergency food response in one region of the UK and the emerging nutrition insecurity. This is more than eradicating hunger but considers availability of support and health services and the availability of appropriate foods to meet individual requirements. In particular, this paper considers those in rural communities, from lower socioeconomic groups or underlying health conditions.MethodsSemistructured professional conversations informed the development of a questionnaire which gathered insights from five organisations involved with the emergency food response in the South East, England, UK. Descriptive themes were derived though inductive analysis and are further discussed in relation to UK government food support measures and early published data.ResultsFour themes emerged from conversations, including: (1) increasing demand, (2) meeting the needs ...
2019
INTRODUCTION: One of the most important responsibilities of governments and relief agencies after each natural disaster is to provide the victims with emergency food items. This is an inevitable measure to save the lives of injured and the ones who are rescued. This is due to inadequacy and unreliability of household and local food supplies. Selection of the type of food is a concern of managers of the response management programs. The purpose of this study was to investigate the characteristics of emergency food items provided after natural disasters in Iran from the key informants' viewpoints. MATERIALS AND METHODS: To conduct this qualitative study, we interviewed 26 experts in the field of nutrition and response management in natural disasters through semi-structured interviews. Participants were selected using purposive sampling. The qualitative content analysis method was further applied to analyze the collected data. RESULTS: Analysis of interviews showed that the characteristics of emergency food provided after natural disasters should be investigated in two categories: (1) nutritional considerations and (2) functional characteristics. Nutritional considerations category comprised subcategories, namely, formulas and special foods for emergencies, food diversity, nutritional needs of different groups, food health and safety, and functional characteristics included subcategories of packaging, cultural norms, and final price. CONCLUSION: Managers, in relation to the emergency food items used after natural disasters, should consider features including emergency formulas and food, food diversification, food health and safety, packaging certificates, cultural norms, and final prices in response plans.
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 2018
Food stress, a similar concept to housing stress, occurs when a household needs to spend more than 25% of their disposable income on food. Households at risk of food stress are vulnerable to food insecurity as a result of inadequate income. A Food Stress Index (FSI) identifies at-risk households, in a particular geographic area, using a range of variables to create a single indicator. Candidate variables were identified using a multi-dimensional framework consisting of household demographics, household income, household expenses, financial stress indicators, food security, food affordability and food availability. The candidate variables were expressed as proportions, of either persons or households, in a geographic area. Principal Component Analysis was used to determine the final variables which resulted in a final set of weighted raw scores. These scores were then scaled to produce the index scores for the Food Stress Index for Western Australia. The results were compared with th...
Nutrition Journal, 2022
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