Provisional Food Security: The Role of Emergency Food Systems in An Evolving Landscape

A lasting consequence of Reagan administration rollbacks in government food assistance programs is the safety net of private food provision organizations. Over the decades that these private assistance agencies grew in scope, food justice movements began sprouting up around the country that sought to address rising food insecurity and other inequities of dominant food systems. Today, private food provision organizations and food justice movements make up a large portion of emergency food systems response, forcing food insecure individuals to rely on overburdened pantries and volunteers who depend on coherent community strategy to succeed. Oftentimes, vulnerable populations are excluded from these systems. This study looks at a variety of private provision and food justice organizations in Kingston, New York, and the surrounding Ulster County, to understand how they operate in urban and rural settings alike during shock circumstances. It explores a variety of components that make up an organization, such how they are managed and what they do for the community, and how those factors promote or discourage food security, food access, inclusivity, and change