How Did The Pandemic Impact Food Accessibility In Washington?

The Washington State Department of Agriculture recently commissioned two studies to look at the COVID-19 pandemic’s impact on food accessibility and production. The WSDA’s Hector Castro, said the two studies, one conducted by Washington State University, the other by the University of Washington, found while the pandemic created significant challenges for both food access and production, the system held up, despite the strain. However, he noted both WSU & UW took different approaches in their research.

"UW drew on a lot of data they already have, they did surveys during the pandemic. WSU used leadership in their communities to drive data collection to take a look when it come to food access and production, what some of the challenges and equities there are in the system.”

Both schools examined how communities made up of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) fared during the pandemic as well. Castro, said researchers submitted their findings paired with recommendations to avoid a similar outcome if something like COVID-19 arises again.

"What both teams are recommending is we look at more closely at the research they provided us and use this information to explore how we met address and support our food production systems but also look at ways to ensure that food access is available widely through our state when its needed.”

Click Here to read the University of Washington study.

Click Here to read the Washington State University study.

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