Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition Department, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA.
Department of Food and Resource Economics Department, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA.
Nutrients. 2018 Aug 25;10(9):1163. doi: 10.3390/nu10091163.
The number of food pantries on U.S. college campuses has increased in response to students' food insecurity, but limited information is available to describe the impact of this resource. The objective of this cross-sectional investigation was to examine the relationship between food insecurity and food pantry awareness, use, and perceived barriers to use.
Students attending the University of Florida in fall 2017 ( = 899) completed the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Adult Food Security Survey and responded to questions about food pantry awareness and use. Sociodemographic data were also collected and included in multivariate logistic regression models.
While most students (70%) were aware of the existing food pantry, nearly a third of respondents were classified as being food insecure. After adjusting for sociodemographic correlates, factors such as identifying as being food insecure, international status, and receiving a student loan or a need-based federal financial aid (Pell grant) increased the likelihood of utilizing the campus food pantry. Despite these predictors, only 38% of food insecure students reported food pantry use. Among students who provided qualitative insights, four main barriers to using the on-campus food pantry were identified: social stigma, insufficient information on pantry use policies, self-identity, and inconvenient hours.
Food security interventions and administrative policy should consider a new model of the traditional campus food pantry that reduces concerns of social stigma and is supported by clear and ongoing communications of operational procedures tailored for the college student population.
为应对学生的粮食不安全问题，美国大学校园内的食品发放处数量有所增加，但对于该资源的影响，目前可用的信息有限。本横断面研究的目的是检验粮食不安全与食品发放处知晓度、使用情况以及使用障碍感知之间的关系。
2017 年秋季，在佛罗里达大学就读的学生（n=899）完成了美国农业部（USDA）成人粮食安全调查，并回答了关于食品发放处知晓度和使用情况的问题。还收集了社会人口统计学数据，并纳入了多变量逻辑回归模型。
尽管大多数学生（70%）知晓现有的食品发放处，但近三分之一的受访者被归类为粮食不安全。在校正社会人口统计学相关因素后，如被认定为粮食不安全、国际身份以及获得学生贷款或基于需求的联邦财政援助（佩尔助学金），使用校园食品发放处的可能性增加。尽管存在这些预测因素，但只有 38%的粮食不安全学生报告使用了食品发放处。在提供定性见解的学生中，确定了使用校园食品发放处的四个主要障碍：社会耻辱感、对发放处使用政策的信息不足、自我认同以及不方便的开放时间。
粮食安全干预措施和行政政策应考虑传统校园食品发放处的新模式，该模式减少了社会耻辱感的担忧，并得到了针对大学生群体量身定制的明确和持续运营程序的支持。
