Hunger in the U.S.

Currently an unprecedented number of Americans are food insecure. While it is shameful so many in the U.S. are hungry, many people who are hungry unnecessarily feel shame in being food insecure. The following current statistics and are provided to help improve understanding of the largeness of this problem.

Reducing food insecurity for seniors is more difficult than for the general population. Even seniors with enough money to purchase food can be food insecure due to lack of transportation, functional limitations and/or health problems.

• A common misconception regarding hunger is that if someone in the United States is hungry it must be because they are out of work and living on the streets. According to a nationwide survey, 36% of household served by food pantries have one or more working adults.
• Forty-eight percent of disabled Americans are fearful about their food security.
• More than 65% of Americans perceives hunger in the U.S. to be a serious national problem.
• While people perceive hunger to be a national problem, most feel it is a problem elsewhere. Less than 30% feel hunger is a problem in their community.
• Ninety-one percent feel that no one should go hungry in the United States of America.

If you are someone you know are food insecure, you can find resources to improve food security here.

School and community gardens can help to improve food security within communities. Photo by Suzanne Paisley.