Hunger by the Numbers: How many basketball arenas would it take…

OK Policy intern Amanda Marcott Thottunkal updated and revised earlier versions of this post, which ran in November 2010 and 2011. The US Department of Agriculture’s annual report on household food security was released in September. On average, during the… Read more [More...]

Five reasons poverty persists in Oklahoma

Poverty has been a part of Oklahoma’s landscape since before statehood.  Early settlers faced enormous odds – drought, food insecurity, and nonexistent infrastructure – and possessed few material resources.  During the Great Depression, the state lost nearly half a million… Read more [More...]

Watch This: Out of school, out of food

Hunger is a chronic problem in Oklahoma.  In 2009, 28 percent of the state’s children lived in households that reported problems maintaining food security during the past year, the highest percentage in the country.  This four-minute video from No Kid… Read more [More...]

Hunger by the Numbers: How many football stadiums would it take…

In September, the US Department of Agriculture released its annual report on household food security. For the 3-year period from 2008-10, an average of one in six Oklahoma households, 16.4 percent, experienced food insecurity. This means that “at times during… Read more [More...]

Guest Blog (Sara Amberg): A forecast we can't ignore

Sara Amberg is Manager of Agency Capacity Building of the Community Food Bank of Eastern Oklahoma. The day before the February 2011 blizzard plowed through the Midwest, I heard a meteorologist report that he had never seen every radar system,… Read more [More...]

Hunger doesn’t take a summer break

OK Policy had the pleasure of meeting with Sara Amberg recently, an advocate for the Community Food Bank of Eastern Oklahoma (CFBEO).  Food banks across the state, including the CFBEO and the Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma and its affiliates,… Read more [More...]

Out of the Mouths of Babes: Legislature moves to cut child nutrition benefits

The Oklahoma legislature is poised to deal a major blow to non-profits and faith-based organizations who help administer the WIC program.  The Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) program is a federally-funded, state-administered nutrition service for low-income women, infants and children… Read more [More...]

How many football stadiums would it take…

Last week, the US Department of Agriculture released its annual report on household food security. They found that for the 3-year period from 2007-09, an average of 15.2 percent of Oklahoma households experienced food insecurity, which means that they “had… Read more [More...]

Guest Blog (Sara Waggoner): Can emergency food programs continue to meet growing needs?

From time to time, we use the OK Policy blog to post submissions we receive from Oklahomans who have interesting perspectives on important policy issues for the state. This entry is from Sara Waggoner, Executive Director of the Community Food… Read more [More...]

Hunger doesn't take a holiday

Recently I had the pleasure of being invited by the Oklahoma Food Security Committee to give a presentation on funding for food and nutrition programs in the stimulus bill.  The meeting featured a superb overview from Liz Tate of the… Read more [More...]