Kansas Health Institute | Information For Policy Makers. Health for Kansans.

TOPEKA — Gov. Mark Parkinson on Wednesday made permanent a task force that studies why growing numbers of Kansans struggle to put food on the table and ways the problem of “food insecurity,” might be solved.

The Kansas Food Security Task force, first formed in 2005 as an advisory group by then-Gov. Kathleen Sebelius, currently has 26 members.

With Parkinson’s new executive order, the group will continue to include at least nine members drawn from various state agencies, public health and other advocacy groups.

Parkinson announced the executive order during a Wednesday press conference.

Kansas is one of the most prosperous, agriculture-rich states in the nation, Parkinson said, yet one in seven families still worry about putting food on the table.

In the fiscal year that ended June 30, the Kansas Food Assistance program served an average of 117,000 families per month, and the three non-profit Feeding America food banks distributed more than 16 million pounds of food.

During the 2009-2010 school year, almost half the state’s schoolchildren participated in free or reduced price school meal programs.

“Ironically, even though we produce an incredible amount of crops in this state, like every other state in the country, we continue to have challenges with food security,” Parkinson said.

The task force produces an annual report about “food security,” which measures how comfortable a family is in their ability to have enough food, and makes recommendations to help prevent hunger in Kansas.

The information is drawn from the yearly U.S. Census Bureau Current Population Survey, said Barbara LaClair, the task force chairperson.

Families can experience different levels of food insecurity, ranging from anxiety over having enough money to buy food, to skipping meals, to experiencing actual hunger, she said.

Parkinson said it was time to focus more attention on the group’s work.

“We really want to highlight the importance of this task force,” he said. “Gov. Sebelius set this up in 2005 as a trial to ensure that this would be effective and helpful. What I’m saying is that it has been effective and helpful and I’d like it to be permanent.”

The task force in earlier reports has recommended broad strategies for reducing hunger and food insecurity, including funding meal programs for seniors, instituting summer school food programs and increasing the state’s minimum wage.

“We know that the majority of these families are working families,” LaClair said. “One of the causes is families that work in low-wage jobs simply are not able to earn enough to pay all the bills and make ends meet. They’re making tough choices between rent, utilities, and medical bills.”

LaClair said a task force recommendation to increase the number of farmers’ markets that participate in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program or SNAP had been successfully implemented. SNAP is the program formerly known as food stamps.

SNAP beneficiaries use an encoded card similar to a debit card, LaClair said. Since most farmers’ markets are outdoors, it was a challenge to hook up electronic card readers.

Eleven farmers’ markets across Kansas now accept SNAP cards for purchases, she said.

Parkinson also signed a proclamation announcing September as “Hunger Awareness Month.”

LaClair called upon Kansans to help those in need, including donating to food banks or pledging volunteer hours to community gardens or other programs.