LOUISVILLE FOOD SECURITY cere cevsne fone Reliable access to affordable and nutritious food is one of the biggest necessities for Louisville residents. In this report, we examine a living wage in Louisville and how it has impacted residents) ability to access food over the past decade. LIVING WAGE — Rising costs have made it more difficult to afford food. Based on data from the MIT Living Wage Calculator, 70% of working households in Louisville earned a living wage in 2019 that was enough to cover a basic level of living expenses including food, childcare, healthcare, transportation, and taxes. That means 30% of working households in Louisville earn below a living wage; however, that number is much higher for single parents, women, and people of color. 48% of Black-headed households, and 56% of Hispanic-headed households, and 38% of female-headed households earn below a living wage. The chart below shows what a living wage looks like in Louisville for a family of four. How much isa living wage in Louisville? A typical family of 4 (2 working adults and 2 children) in Louisville needed about $76,491 after taxes (or $94,375 before taxes) to achieve a living wage in 2021. ‘hits care Tansporttion Housing Food ‘Stes (sszz) iam iozs) | gr820) Wat might theie ‘money go towara? This graph shows Soa expenses foran aan average famiy of hese foun 2021 were a) each represents 500 I tbtock = $500 From May 2021 to May 2022 Where would they have to spend more? Across the categories n the ling wage inflation caused prices to rise calculator, transportation and food saw the largest price increases. This family ‘across the board. Inmid-2022, would need to add the blocks below to their budget to meet their needs. this famty would need over me a BME 56.000 ore dar tan lst year toimet ernst seers a THE BENEFITS CLIFF — Safety net programs don't meet all families: needs. |— Approximately 30,600 Louisville residents earn too Consider a family of 4 Senet sop much to qualify for SNAP benefits but don't earn Ee oenoen Es jeer enough to cover their food needs. Stead atenence Feeding America estimates the total food budget = ° shortfall for Louisville, or the amount households Maximumroes crosinone need to meet their food needs, totals $46.4 MILLION. {SRAM beets ‘ira wageFOOD INSECURITY —| Food insecurity has not returned to pre-pandemic levels While adult and child food insecurity hit all-time lows in 2019, they increased sharply during the COVID-19 pandemic. In Loui peer cities, child food insecurity is consistently . higher than adult food insec LOUISVILLE FOOD INSECURITY eo rats-coteoren 2986S isville and across rity. As of 2021, Louisville ranks 6TH in overall food insecurity and 9TH in child food insecurity. FOOD ENVIRONMENT ——_; Food deserts have grown in the past decade AREAS WITHIN A FMILE WALK OR DRIVE OF LARGE GROCERY ‘STORES, APRIL 2022. Louisville's food ecosystem provides ample access for some, but not for all. Access to grocery stores makes it easier for people to. find nutritious food that is within their budget. The closure of two downtown grocery stores, First Link in 2016 and Kroger in 2017, contributed to a food desert in densely-populated parts of Russell and Old Louisville, highlighting the importance of having more than just one grocery store nearby. KEY ‘GROCERY STORES (LIKE SAVE-A-LOTD ‘SUPER MARKETS (LIKE ALDI ‘SUPER STORES (LIKE WALMART) FOOD ACCESS —_| More than 1 in 5 Louisville residents live in a food desert. PERCENT OF ALL RESIDENTS LIVING IN A FOOD DESERT, 20: Income under 200% of very and more than mie om agroceny, 1 Omaha 2.St. Louis courts VTE 4. Grane Rapids 5: Charlotte 6 Louisvile 7. Kansas Cty 8. Oklahoma City —o 9.Tulsa 10. Greenvite LNasvile ZT! 12, Cincinnati 13. Knowle 14 Greensboro 15, Birmingham 16. Indianapolis 17, Memphis = 21 While many residents travel to grocery stores outside their neighborhoods, distance from a grocery store is especially important when people face other barriers, like limited mobility, lack of access to transportation, or low income. Compared to its peers, Louisville ranks TOTH in the percent of residents with no vehicle who live more than a mile from a grocery store, 8THin the percent of residents receiving SNAP benefits who live more than a mile from a gro- cery store, and ‘TTHin the percent of seniors who live more than a mile from a grocery store.