Increasing the Resilience of the Food Systems
In Islamic States in Face of Future Food Crises
59
 Natural disasters: Natural disasters, notably hurricanes such asMaria, Irma, and Sandy,
caused $205 billion in damage.208 The most devastationwas seen after HurricaneMaria
in Puerto Rico, where damagewas estimated at $90 billion. At least 85% of households
were deemed food-insecure after the hurricane.209
These crises had almost no impact on USDA or FDA functions or the overall U.S. food supply.
None of them altered the country’s food production system, and they were considered short-
term natural disasters. The U.S. government’s primary response has been through directly
funding nutrition programs. In the most recent Farm Bill, passed in 2018, $867 billion was set
aside to support the food system. Of this sum, 77% ($663.8 billion) will be spent on nutrition
programs to support the most vulnerable members of society.210
These disasters were covered by the Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA).
However, the USDA also issued emergency funding. For instance, it issued $43.7 million in
benefits andmore than 1.1million pounds of USDA foods for households impacted byHurricane
Sandy.211
Table 29: U.S. Vulnerable Groups
Group Impact
Women The number of food insecure households significantly increased, by 11.1% to
14.9%, between 2008 and 2011, with single women disproportionately
impacted.212
Small Holders Empirical studies found that the labor force did restrict during the recession,
reducing the flow of seasonal workers to the U.S. As a result, hourly wages
increased by 6.9%.213
Children Twenty-eight percent of households with children became food secure in 2008 as a
result of the recession.214
Food Security Stakeholders
The U.S. government has established an extensive apparatus, led by the USDA, to enable the
pillars of food security. The success of government policy to date has been accomplished through
the provision of material, strategic financial support through its core agency to enable
agricultural research and support farming activity. This has enabled its food industry to flourish.
208 CNN. (2019, June 5). Hurricane StatisticsFast Facts. Retrieved from
209 Bread for theWorld. (2019, March). Hunger and Poverty in Puerto Rico. Retrieved from
210 (2018, April 12). Congressional Budget Office Updates FarmBill Math. Retrieved from
211 USDA. (2019, June 27). Food Assistance in Disaster Situations.Retrieved fro
212 “The Effects of Recession on ChildWell-Being.” PolicyLab, The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. Nov 2010.
213 Maoyong Fan, Anita Alves Pena, and Jeremy M. Perloff. “Effects of the Great Recession on U.S. Agricultural Labor Market.”
2015. IRLEWorking Paper No. 104-1
214 Alisha Coleman-Jensen, Matthew P. Rabbitt, Christian A. Gregory, and Anita Singh. “Household Food Security in the United
States in 2017, ERR-256.” USDA. 2018. Economic Research Service.