Welcome to The Kicker from Carolina Public Press, a North Carolina news show bringing you conversations with journalists, sources and newsmakers from across the state.

In this episode, Kicker host Peter Kent talks with Hannah Randall and Amy Sims of Manna FoodBank, which serves a 16-county region of Western North Carolina, about issues of food insecurity the region they serve.

Food insecurity describes a broader concept than hunger, which is a feeling of needing food at a given time. Food insecurity includes this, but is also a long-term uncertainty about whether one will consistently be able to get enough nutritious food for oneself and one’s family.

Randall and Sims point to multiple causes of serious food insecurity in specific pockets of Western North Carolina, including lack of transportation, limited Internet access, lack of affordable housing, the opioid crisis, and nontraditional families such as grandparents raising kids in a form that public services were not structured to recognize or assist.

This week’s conversation is part of Carolina Public Press’ yearlong reporting initiative, Faces of Hunger, which focuses on regional food insecurity in North Carolina’s western areas. The first installment of this project appeared at the beginning of June, including articles looking closely at hunger in Swain County and at the regional problem of child hunger.

About The Kicker

The Kicker is a production of Carolina Public Press. It also airs weekly at 7 p.m. Wednesdays on WPVM radio 103.7 FM in Asheville. Send an email to thekicker@carolinapublicpress.org if you would like to contact the staff of Carolina Public Press about The Kicker.