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Getting the food out: A content analysis of the online communication of Seattle food banks during the initial response to COVID-19
- Source :
- Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development, Vol 10, Iss 4 (2021)
- Publication Year :
- 2021
- Publisher :
- Thomas A. Lyson Center for Civic Agriculture and Food Systems, 2021.
-
Abstract
- The COVID-19 pandemic has threatened food availability, accessibility, and acceptability. Food banks are experiencing increased demand at the same time as operational challenges due to COVID-19. The objective of this study was to assess if and how food banks have utilized web and social media platforms to communicate dynamic information relevant to food security to a growing clientele amid a widespread emergency. We conducted a content analysis of web and social media communications made by 25 Seattle food banks in April and May 2020, which corresponded with the two full months of Washington Governor Inslee’s initial stay-at-home order (March 25–May 31, 2020). We developed and applied a codebook to assess if communications contained information related to food availability, accessibility, and acceptability in the context of COVID-19, as well as other descriptive information, such as changes to food bank operations. Our findings show that food banks in Seattle communicated the most on web and social media platforms about food avail¬ability and accessibility, while they communicated less commonly about food acceptability. Past disasters have exposed the need to include food acceptability in disaster planning to ensure that emergency food can be equitably distributed and consumed by diverse populations. Our results suggest that food banks may wish to periodically assess the main themes of their online communications and the reach of their different platforms during the COVID-19 pandemic as one strategy to facilitate community food security.
- Subjects :
- Technology
Food Banks
Social Sciences
Context (language use)
Communities. Classes. Races
TX1-1110
Urban groups. The city. Urban sociology
GF1-900
Regional planning
Order (exchange)
Pandemic
Geography. Anthropology. Recreation
Social media
TX341-641
GE1-350
Governor
Marketing
Community food security
GV1-1860
Food security
Nutrition. Foods and food supply
HT390-395
COVID-19
HT101-395
Agriculture
Recreation. Leisure
Environmental sciences
HT51-1595
Disaster
Content analysis
Food Security
Human ecology. Anthropogeography
Business
Home economics
Social Media
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 21520801
- Volume :
- 10
- Issue :
- 4
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....d2888d267fcb2e079f4fcfc877ac6322