Navigating Food Insecurity as a Rural Older Adult: The Importance of Congregate Meal Sites, Social Networks and Transportation Services

ABSTRACT

To explore how older adults in rural communities navigate food insecurity, ten focus groups were held in Indiana, USA with 65 discussants. Recordings underwent inductive qualitative data analysis. Driving and transport remain a barrier to rural food access. Living alone is another contributor to food insecurity, while older adults’ social networks are protective. Congregate meal sites are critical to maintaining nutrition and are underfunded; one-third of this region’s meal sites closed in 2019. These must be maintained and expanded. Transportation to food outlets is needed. Mechanisms that reinforce older adults’ social networks can build upon an existing asset.

KEYWORDS:

• Older adults
• food security
• food insecurity
• rural areas
• congregate meals
• rural transportation
• social networks
• mental health

Ethics approvals

This study was approved by the Indiana University Institutional Review Board, protocol #10322

Disclosure statement

None of the authors has any conflict of interest with this research.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Indiana University Center for Rural Engagement