Food Insecurity Needs Assessment: Brief Introduction

As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, food insecurity has increased significantly in Western Massachusetts. Despite evidence describing the overall causes of food insecurity in the United States, in-depth explorations of local and regional areas remain important to understand geographic variations and identify locally responsive solutions. In the four counties of Western Massachusetts, a needs assessment was conducted using: 1) an environmental scan to identify existing food-based organizations and federal nutrition benefit utilization in Massachusetts (MA); and 2) semi-structured interviews with community organizational representatives.

This research study was approved by the University of Massachusetts Amherst IRB on January 21, 2022 and was classified as exempt.