Racial/Ethnic Disparities in Food Pantry Use and Barriers in Massachusetts during the First Year of the COVID-19 Pandemic
Loading...
Links to Files
Author/Creator ORCID
Date
2022-06-18
Type of Work
Department
Program
Citation of Original Publication
Marriott, James P., Lauren Fiechtner, Nick W. Birk, Daniel Taitelbaum, Angela Odoms-Young, Norbert L. Wilson, Lauren A. Clay, and Rachel M. Zack. 2022. "Racial/Ethnic Disparities in Food Pantry Use and Barriers in Massachusetts during the First Year of the COVID-19 Pandemic" Nutrients 14, no. 12: 2531. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu14122531
Rights
This item is likely protected under Title 17 of the U.S. Copyright Law. Unless on a Creative Commons license, for uses protected by Copyright Law, contact the copyright holder or the author.
Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
Subjects
Abstract
This study sought to describe racial disparities in food insecurity, food pantry use, and
barriers to and experiences with food pantries during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic.
We surveyed 2928 adults in Massachusetts regarding food access in the year before and during
the first year of the pandemic. Weighted multivariable logistic regression models assessed racial
differences in barriers to and experiences with pantry use during the pandemic. Black and Latino
adults experienced the highest prevalence of food insecurity and pantry use. Additionally, Black
and Latino adults reported more barriers to, but less stigma around, pantry use compared to White
adults. Latino adults were less likely to know about pantry hours/locations and encounter staff who
spoke their language. Black and Latino adults were also more likely to find pantry hours/locations
inconvenient and have difficulty with transportation. The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in increased
food insecurity, and food access inequities persisted. Programmatic policies to improve pantry access
in communities of color could include increasing the hours/days that pantries are open, increasing
bilingual staff, providing transportation or delivery, and creating multilingual public awareness
campaigns on how to locate pantries.