County Hunger Maps 

This map provides hunger and poverty-related data at the county level in Central Texas. Click on the county to view more data about hunger, poverty and access to federal nutrition programs. 

NOTES

At risk of hunger:  Also known as food-insecurity,  this condition describes the disruption or threat of disruption in daily eating habits because of a household's inability to provide enough food.  This data comes from the Feeding America Map the Meal Gap 2011 project.  

Average cost of a meal: The average amount of money spent per week on food by food secure people, as assessed in the Current Population Survey, and divided by 21 (an estimation of the number of meals eaten per week).  For more information, visit the Feeding America Map the Meal Gap 2011 website.

Eligibility for nutrition programs:  Federal nutrition programs such as SNAP (food stamps), Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) and the National School Lunch and Breakfast Programs provide low-income families with access to affordable, healthy food. Eligibility for these federal entitlement programs are largely based on income. Unlike federal grant programs such as the Women Infants and Children Program (WIC) and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), all those who qualify for federal entitlement program benefits should receive them. Communities miss out on a significant opportunity to alleviate hunger when families do not access federal nutrition programs.

Estimated economic activity from food stamps: U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Economic Research Service uses the Food Assistance National Input-Output Multiplier (FANIOM) model to represent and measure links between USDA’s domestic food assistance programs, agriculture, and the U.S. economy. In the October 2010 report, it states:

An increase of $1 billion in SNAP expenditures is estimated to increase economic activity (GDP) by $1.79 billion. In other words, every $5 in new SNAP benefits generates as much as $9 of economic activity. This multiplier estimate replaces a similar but older estimate of $1.84 billion reported in Hanson and Golan (2002).

The jobs impact estimates from FANIOM range from 8,900 to 17,900 full-time-equivalent jobs plus self-employed for a $1-billion increase in SNAP benefits. The preferred jobs impact estimates are the 8,900 full-time equivalent jobs plus self-employed or the 9,800 full-time and part-time jobs plus self-employed from $1 billion of SNAP benefits (type I multiplier).

Estimated lost economic activity due to unused food stamps: This data takes into account the estimated number of Texans in each county who were income-eligible for SNAP benefits in 2010 compared with the actual number participating, as well as the estimated SNAP benefits and economic impact of those benefits lost due to non-participation. Income-eligibility does not equal actual eligibility - SNAP applicants must also meet asset, household expense and immigration tests in order to receive a benefit. For more information, visit the SNAP map infographic on HungerIsUnacceptable.com.  Source:  Texas Food Bank Network.

Extreme poverty: People and families are classified as being in poverty if their income is less than their poverty threshold. If their income is less than half their poverty threshold, they are below 50% of poverty (an individual making $5,570 or any family of four making less than $11,175 annually).  This condition affects one in 15 Americans or about 6.5 percent of the poulation. The extreme poverty data was derived and estimated from the 5-year American Community Survey 2006-2010 Average Poverty Data.

Low-income: While there is no official federal definition for "low-income," many federal programs use the 185% of poverty threshold to determine eligibility for programs serving familes in need such as WIC, Head Start, Food Stamp Program, National School Lunch Program, the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program and the Children’s Health Insurance Program. The low-income data was derived and estimated from the 5-year American Community Survey 2006-2010 Average Poverty Data.

Population:  Retrieved from the Small Area Income & Poverty Estimates (SAIPE) 2010 poverty data.

Poverty:  Following the Office of Management and Budget's (OMB) Statistical Policy Directive 14, the Census Bureau uses a set of money income thresholds that vary by family size and composition to determine who is in poverty. If a family's total income is less than the family's threshold, then that family and every individual in it is considered in poverty.

The Poverty rate data for each county was derived from the 5-year American Community Survey 2006-2010 Average Poverty Data.  The Federal Poverty Level, also refered to as the Federal Poverty Threshold, are issued each year in the Federal Register  by the Department of Health and Human Services and are used for administrative purpose such as determining eligibility for federal nutrition programs.  For more information about the Federal Poverty Guideline and Poverty, visit the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services website. 

Resources to address hunger:

Texas Food Bank Network and Baylor University's Texas Hunger Initiative study, “Hunger by the Numbers: A Blueprint for Ending Hunger in Texas,” examines the resources low-income households rely on to make ends meet and afford a nutritious diet.  The study details the resources available in each county and how these resources are used. 

Own Money: a family's own financial means derived from wages, savings, investments or inheritances.
Nutrition Programs: includes senior bags, summer meals, USDA commodities, after-school programs, school breakfast program, WIC, school lunch and food stamps.

Charity: Includes Meals on Wheels programs and other charity resources.  

Missing Meals: The gap between resources and a family's own money and the USDA standard for a moderately-priced diet.

For more information, download the full report (74MB) or view it online.

USDA moderately-priced diet:  The USDA uses four food plans (thrifty, low-cost, moderate-cost, and liberal) to represent healthful market baskets at three different cost levels.  The plans are based on current dietary standards, the latest data on food consumption, nutrient content and food prices, and reflect the time available for home food preparation.  Market basket prices are adjusted for age, gender and family size. For the purpose of this infographic, we used the October 2010 USDA Food Plan's moderate-price basket with the lowest cost of food for a family of four. For further details, visit the USDA Food Plans website.