Choice Between Food and Neccessities (6.5.1)

Clients were asked whether their families had to choose between food and necessities during the 12-month period prior to the interview. Table 6.5.1 summarizes the results.

Table 6.5.1
CHOICE BETWEEN FOOD AND NECESSITIES

	Pantry Client Households	Kitchen Client Households	Shelter Client Households	All Client Households
In the previous 12 months, clients or their family who ever had to choose at least once between
Paying for food and paying for utilities or heating fuel	44.6%	33.3%	27.7%	41.5%
Paying for food and paying for rent or mortgage	36.4%	31.8%	28.3%	35.0%
Paying for food and paying for medicine or medical care	33.5%	25.5%	25.0%	31.6%

Households with all three situations	19.6%	14.2%	12.5%	18.2%
Households with two, but not three, of the situations	18.9%	15.8%	13.5%	18.0%
Households with just one of the situations	17.3%	15.9%	16.3%	17.0%
SAMPLE SIZE (N)	37,986	10,667	4,225	52,878

Source:
This table was constructed based on usable responses to Question 52 of the client survey.

Notes:
All usable responses were weighted as described in Chapter 3 and in the Technical Appendix volume to represent all emergency food clients of the A2H National Network. The sample sizes (N) also include missing data.

For choosing between food and utilities, missing, don’t know, and refusal responses combined are 2.8% for pantry clients, 3.0% for kitchen clients, 3.5% for shelter clients, and 2.9% for all clients.

For choosing between food and rent (mortgage), missing, don’t know, and refusal responses combined are 2.9% for pantry clients, 3.1% for kitchen clients, 3.7% for shelter clients, and 3.0% for all clients.

For choosing between food and medical care, missing, don’t know, and refusal responses combined are 2.7% for pantry clients, 3.1% for kitchen clients, 3.4% for shelter clients, and 2.8% for all clients.

For number of situations, missing, don’t know, and refusal responses combined are 2.3% for pantry clients, 2.6% for kitchen clients, 3.2% for shelter clients, and 2.4% for all clients.

As shown in Table 6.5.1, among pantry client households, 44.6% had to choose between paying for food and paying for utilities or heating; 36.4% had to choose between food and rent or mortgage; and 33.3% had to choose between food and medicine or medical care. Results for kitchen and shelter client households are:

Among kitchen client households, 33.3% had to choose between paying for food and paying for utilities or heating; 31.8% between food and rent or mortgage; and 25.5% between food and medicine or medical care.
Among shelter client households, 27.7% had to choose between paying for food and paying for utilities or heating; 28.3% between food and rent or mortgage; and 25.0% between food and medicine or medical care.