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This is the fourth in a series of posts designed to raise awareness of the challenges of hunger and poverty  in specific communities, and the work of food banks to address those challenges. 

According to new research by the Food Bank For New York City, the number of New York City residents struggling to afford food has doubled  to 4 million since 2003. Recent Food Bank research also shows that 20 percent of New Yorkers report they would not be able to afford food immediately after losing their household income.

Meanwhile, the Food Bank has been experiencing food shortages for much of the past year, and food prices and unemployment continue to rise. It is astounding that in one of the world’s richest cities, so many people would have trouble affording one of life’s basic necessities. That is why Tyson Foods is stepping up to make a difference.

For every comment made to this blog posting, Tyson will donate 100 lbs of food (up to a 35,000-pound truckload) to the Food Bank For New York City. That means that we need 350 comments right here to help provide food for struggling New Yorkers. As in similar efforts we’ve had here in the past few months, short comments are acceptable, and we won’t harvest your email addresses to use later.  Comments are moderated, so it might take a bit to get them posted.

As the major hunger-relief organization for New York City, the Food Bank works to end food poverty and increase access to affordable, nutritious food for low-income New Yorkers throughout New York’s five boroughs. In addition to acquiring and distributing food to a citywide network of more than 1,000 food assistance programs, the Food Bank provides Direct Service, Education & Nutrition, Financial Empowerment and Disaster Relief Programs.

Continue to read below for more information about hunger and food poverty in New York City – and don’t forget to post your comment!

• Approximately 4 million New York City residents struggle to afford food for themselves and their families. Of that number, approximately half report they have never turned to food assistance before but worry that they may need to in the coming year.
• Close to half of all seniors living in New York City (47 percent) experience difficulty affording food
• 56 percent of households with children in NYC report difficulty affording food
• Close to one quarter (24 percent) of women in NYC report that they would not be able to afford food immediately after losing household income
• The average income for NYC households accessing emergency food that have employed members is $1,507 per month
• Almost one-third (31 percent) of disabled adults in NYC live below the federal poverty level (approximately $16,000 per year for a family of three)

Learn more about the Food Bank For New York City at foodbanknyc.org.  Click here to join the food bank’s Facebook cause.   Please follow the new Twitter account @FoodBank4NYC.

Thanks to your efforts, we’ve now received more than 350 comments!  The food bank will receive a truckload of Tyson products within the next  few weeks.  Please continue to get involved in in the fight against hunger.