Food Insecurity Persists in Santa Clara county Despite Assistance

For the last 10 days of each month, Julia carefully pieces together meals from food bank produce and canned goods, waiting for her food benefits to be renewed. It’s a stressful time for the 28-year-old, who asked to remain anonymous for privacy reasons.

Julia receives around $600 a month in food stamps to feed herself and her three children. She stretches that money by buying meat – enough for about three weeks – and supplementing with weekly trips to the food bank for fruits and vegetables. But those fresh items don’t last long, usually spoiling within a couple of days.

Hunger, and the constant worry of planning the next meal, dominates her life. “Sometimes at the end of the month we have two days left and I think, ‘Oh my God! Six more days until we get food stamps! What am I going to do?'” Julia told San José Spotlight. “I feel terrible, not knowing if I will be able to feed them next week.”

Julia isn’t alone. A recent study from Santa Clara University reveals that many families in Santa Clara County continue to struggle with food insecurity, even with food assistance programs.

The study, conducted from 2023-24, examined food insecurity across 55 ZIP codes in the county. It found that neighborhoods in East San Jose, like mayfair and Alum Rock, have the highest rates, with roughly 30% of residents facing hardship even after receiving help. Central San José also showed a high risk,at 23.5%. In contrast,los Altos had the lowest predicted level of food insecurity,at 11.7%.Gilroy is estimated to experience 22.6% food insecurity.

Andrew Starbird, a Santa Clara University details systems professor who led the study, said the high levels of food insecurity were surprising, considering the support available from nonprofits like Martha’s Kitchen and Second Harvest of Silicon Valley.

“accessing food assistance can be difficult in some neighborhoods,” Starbird explained to San José Spotlight. “We need more…