Natchez, Mississippi

Mississippi has been declared the hungriest state with the highest rates of food insecurity in the United States. 20% of the entire population is considered to be food insecure, including over 162,000 children facing the struggle of hunger in Mississippi today. High rates of food insecurity directly correlate to high rates of poverty and unemployment. Mississippi’s rates of food insecurity aid in also making it the poorest state in the country, with 50 of Mississippi’s 82 counties being in persistent poverty. COVID-19 has only worsened the state of Mississippi’s already harrowing hunger and poverty rates. In order to lessen poverty and unemployment in our state, we must first attend to Mississippi’s alarming food insecurity rates. It is critical now, more than ever, to donate and support Mississippi’s people in need and local restaurants to help drive out hunger and poverty in our home state.