The private food assistance network has expanded amidst a receding welfare state, signaling the privatization of food assistance and other social services. Simultaneously, the cultural association of poverty with morality characterizes some individuals as more “deserving” of assistance than others. As people seek social services, they must navigate programs embedded with these ideas of deservingness. I use data from 21 in-depth, semi-structured interviews with food bank clients and over 225 hours of participant observation at a California food bank and its partner agencies to examine how clients experience barriers to accessing private food assistance. I find that nonprofit program structures are designed to serve an unencumbered client, yet even populations characterized as “deserving” do not meet the characteristics of the unencumbered client. This nearly unattainable status of unencumbered client contributes to inequity emerging from the structural level that manifests as individuals try to access and use private food assistance. These structural barriers manifest in four ways at the food bank: material resources, nonprofit infrastructure and coordination, communication channels, and policing. Based on these findings, organizational practices of nonprofits are of key importance when considering the reproduction of inequality in society.
This research explores the dependencies between community food security and local food movements. We use a mixed methods approach that includes: analysis of 2.97 million pounds of food bank donations from 296 organizations, network analysis of the local food system with 77 farms and 439 market connections, and 24 interviews with food bank donors and staff. We find strong ties between the food bank and local food producers, particularly producers that are organic and sell directly to the public. Nearly half the donating farms also sold to local markets; and together supplied the majority of locally produced food (296,090 pounds) distributed by the food bank. Yet, both movements operate within capitalist systems, even when the food is decommodified. Producer motivations for donating are not purely based on social responsibility to feed the hungry but also acknowledge the financial and marketing benefits of donating in terms of receiving tax credits, participating in procurement programs, and improving public relations. Our findings suggest that research and policy focused on local food systems or food security should consider such ties and their implications for growing or maintaining resulting practices.
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