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Report: 1 in 10 lack access to enough food

Photo: Aigars Reinholds, Photos.com

Sep 6, 2012 at 7:23 am

ST. PAUL, MN (AP) - A new report says one in ten people in Minnesota don't have access to enough food for a healthy lifestyle.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture report is gathered by census workers who talk to people about their access to food _ or lack of it. They're measuring ''food security'' _ the term for consistent access to enough food to be healthy.

Minnesota Public Radio News says the state figures are based on an average from the years 2009 to 2011. The report says about 10 percent of Minnesotans are food insecure, while about 4 percent of households have low food security. That means people sometimes eat less or go without meals because of money or other resources for food.

Minnesota fares better than the nation as a whole. Nearly 15 percent of households nationwide struggle to put food on the table.