Summary<\/p>\n
More Americans are struggling to afford food, according to a new Federal Reserve Bank of New York report.
\n Researchers found increases in food insecurity particularly among lower-income households and families with young children who missed meals or needed food assistance.
\n The findings may help explain why consumer sentiment remains low despite relatively strong economic data, as financial outcomes have become increasingly unequal.<\/p>\n
\n AI-generated summary was reviewed by a CNN editor.<\/p>\n
\n There\u2019s been a \u201cremarkable\u201d increase over the past few years in Americans struggling to put food on the table<\/a>, and that\u2019s likely contributing to record-low consumer sentiment readings, new Federal Reserve Bank of New York research showed Wednesday.\n <\/p>\n \n The New York Fed updated a 2020 analysis on the disproportionate financial effects of the pandemic with newly collected data from its closely watched Survey of Consumer Expectations.\n <\/p>\n \n Researchers found that a greater share of Americans have become more \u201cfood insecure\u201d than they were in May and June of 2020 and are dipping into savings to cover expenses, struggling to access food, have kids who missed meals, or are receiving food donations or federal nutrition assistance<\/a>.\n <\/p>\n \n \u201cWe find a remarkable increase in food insecurity, particularly among lower-educated and lower-income households and households with young children,\u201d New York Fed researchers wrote Wednesday.\n <\/p>\n \n Those same groups also reported increases in pessimism regarding their financial well-being.\n <\/p>\n \n While not necessarily causal, the association between rising food insecurity and increased pessimism points to a potential explanation as to why US consumer sentiment has been in the dumps despite economic data remaining fairly resilient, if not quite strong, researchers noted.\n <\/p>\n \n Income and wealth inequality have long persisted in the US, but Americans\u2019 economic experiences and outcomes have become increasingly uneven in recent years.\n <\/p>\n