Leaders from around Chula Vista are trying to figure out how to tackle the problem of too many people having too little to eat. They gathered at The South Bay Hunger Relief Forum on Monday.
Food insecurity — the problem of people routinely going hungry — is a growing in San Diego County, according to the conference organizers, Healthy Chula Vista.
In the South Bay area, more than one-third of households earn less than twice the federal poverty level. More than half of the adults who earn under that amount cannot afford enough food. The high cost of living is forcing some tough choices.
“It’s huge and it’s getting bigger,” said Chula Vista Mayor Mary Casillas Salas. “It relates to the high cost of living in San Diego. So many more families are falling into poverty and having to make decisions. Do we pay the rent? Do we pay for medical bills? What kind food can we buy?”
The South Bay Hunger Forum brought together everyone working on the issue, from people who offer food assistance to groups who educate people on healthy eating. This is the first of three forums looking at food insecurity in the South Bay area.
“The hungry is really, it almost has no definition,” said Assemblywoman Shirley Weber, D-San Diego. “We found on college campuses, students who were full-time students, who may have a place to stay, but they don’t have food.”
Weber authored a bill to help college students going hungry.
Panelists at Monday’s forum at the Chula Vista Civic Center Library talked about the need to pool local resources. Only 67 percent of the people eligible for California's food assistance program CalFresh have applied for the benefit.
