Food practices and representations of a group of women in their use of the Alimentar card in a poor neighborhood in Granadero Baigorria, Santa Fe

Abstract

In Argentina, 42% of the population is immersed in poverty, in contexts where health, educational, structural and food resources are scarce. To try to moderate this situation, the Argentine State implements several social plans and programs that seek to provide support to the most disadvantaged populations. Food programs include food provided in soup kitchens, financial assistance and food deliveries. Families living in poverty develop food practices that allow them to survive on the scarce resources they have. This paper describes the food practices and representations of a beneficiary population of the Argentina Plan against Hunger in the context of the covid-19 pandemic, in 2020. This research was conducted from a qualitative perspective. From the results obtained, it can be noted that the Alimentar Card played a fundamental role in the food and economy of these families, since it made it possible for them to buy food that previously meant a greater effort to acquire, and contributed to the fact that the situation of food insecurity in which they found themselves has not deepened even more as a result of the pandemic. The eating pattern of this population is characterized by being monotonous and little varied. During the development of this research, the card was withdrawn when the child turned 7 years old and, from the perspective of the women interviewed, this was one of the most important limitations of this program.