‘Food is an emergency every week’: COVID-19 and food access among food pantry users

Abstract

Introduction: Food insecurity in Cleveland rose to 33.2% in 2020 (over 17 points higher than 2018), predominantly due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, little is known about the specific causal pathways linking the pandemic to food security, especially for food pantry clients. This study examined the impacts of the pandemic on the food security of Cleveland pantry clients. 


Methods: 15 clients were recruited through the Greater Cleveland Food Bank. Each participant completed the USDA’s Six Item Food Security Module and an interview about their food pantry use and the impact of COVID-19 on food access. Data was analyzed using eco-social theory, which seeks to understand how individuals embody social conditions, resulting in health inequity.


Results: 60% of participants self-reported as having ‘very low’ food security. The majority used pantries pre-pandemic. The pathways through which the pandemic affected food access included: loss of job/income, rising food prices, limited mobility due to stay at home orders, high COVID caution, and increased food access resulting from COVID Relief programs such as Pandemic EBT and stimulus payments.


Discussion: While COVID relief programs assisted with food access, many participants continued to be food insecure, creating new and heightened reliance on food pantries. These findings are contextualized by the historical legacy of racist, discriminatory practices such as redlining in Cleveland, which have led to limited food access and community disinvestment. These disparities result in a lack of protective resources to buffer low-income families from the impacts of the pandemic, resulting in exacerbated and prolonged food insecurity.