Food Insecurity Rate
This indicator reports the estimated percentage of the population that experienced food insecurity during the report year.
Food insecurity reflects barriers to accessing affordable, nutritious, and culturally responsive foods. This measure helps track progress in improving access to healthy foods and strengthening how children and families connect to programs and services that support their well-being.
Source
Source Description
Feeding America is the nation’s network of more than 200 food banks and the largest hunger-relief charity in the United States. Each year, Feeding America secures and distributes three billion pounds of food and grocery products through 61,000 agencies nationwide. The agency network provides charitable food assistance to an estimated 37 million people in need annually. In addition to outreach, Feeding America works with other foundations to produce hunger studies like Map the Meal Gap to help combat hunger by learning about food insecurity at the local level.
Methodology
This indicator reports percentage of food insecure population in the United States. Additional information includes food insecure persons ineligible for income assistance. Maximum income thresholds for assistance programs vary by state (165% FPL to 200% FPL). These data are acquired from Feeding America’s Map the Meal Gap hunger study. Food insecurity is defined by the USDA as the inability to meet food needs during at least 7 months of the year. Data are estimates generated by Feeding America using inputs from multiple data sources, including the Current population Survey (CPS), the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), and the American Community Survey (ACS). Additional analysis was contributed by Nielsen. For complete details please see the full Executive Summary or visit the Map the Meal Gap web page.
Data Breakouts Available
- Food Insecurity – Trends in Food Insecurity Rates Over Time
- Food Insecurity – Food Insecure Population Ineligible for SNAP Assistance
- Food Insecurity – Food Insecure Children
This indicator is available at the following subscription levels:
- Premium (currently viewing this indicator and report combination)