Hunger In Our Community

…but many of our neighbors still do

Food insecurity, or hunger, is the lack of enough food to lead a healthy and active life. Each year, Fulfill provides food and other resources for over 136,000 of our neighbors who are food insecure.

Two out of every 5 people served through our network of food pantries and other community feeding programs are CHILDREN.

Children Who Are Hungry

Are sick more often, recover slowly, are hospitalized more often
Get more headaches, stomach aches, colds, ear infections
Are less likely to learn as much, as fast, or as well
Have more behavioral, emotional, and academic problems
Are more aggressive and anxious than adequately nourished children
Teens are more likely to be suspended and have difficulty getting along with others.

Adults & Children

Are more susceptible to obesity, which is linked to diabetes, heart disease and cancers

Poverty Over a Decade

Hunger is caused by many different things, but poverty has a major role in food insecurity. Food insecure households who can work, do work, but earn too little to cover basic needs. Poverty in Monmouth and Ocean Counties is higher among children. Poverty has also grown among all ages in the last decade:

2007 All Ages
2017 All Ages

Monmouth

5.9%
7.6%

Ocean

8.1%
10.9%

2007 Children
2017 Children

Monmouth

7.2%
9.9%

Ocean

12.4%
18.7%

Because our shore community has a high cost of living, even families earning twice the federal poverty level may still struggle with food insecurity.

In Monmouth or Ocean County, 20% – 27% of households earn less than $35,000 annually.
With the average rent for a 2-bedroom apartment at $1,479/month, this means that 1 in every 4 or 5 households must pay half of their income or more just for housing.

This leads to some hard choices for food insecure households:

78% choose between paying for enough food and paying for housing,
81% choose between paying for enough food and paying for heat and utilities,
77% choose between paying for enough food and paying for medical care.

Fulfill is committed to providing an ever-growing, comprehensive suite of services to those in need. Fulfill provides over 12 million meals every year to food insecure households. We provide over $15 million in resources to food insecure households by helping them access SNAP, affordable health insurance, tax credits, and jobs skills.
See our Programs

By addressing the root causes of hunger, Fulfill creates real results that are life-changing, And when we all work together, as a team, hunger won’t win here in our communities.