Introduction
Hunger is the uneasy or painful sensation caused by lack of food. Lack of food due to poverty or constrained resources, can lead to
malnutrition over time.
According to the United States Department of Agriculture publication, Household Food Security in the United States, 2007, 89% of American households had adequate food throughout the
entire year in 2007, meaning that they had access, at all times, to enough food
for an active, healthy life for all household members. The rest of the households, 11.1%, were food insecure and did not have adequate food sometime during that year.
As reported in USDA Food Security in the United States: Conditions and Trends, in 2007, 36.2 million people lived in food-insecure households. Of these individuals, 8.2 million adults and 3.7 million children lived in households where someone experienced hunger during the year.
Physical and mental changes regarding inadequate food intakes can have harmful effects on learning, development, productivity, physical and psychological health, and family life.
Frequently Asked Questions
Tools
2008 Farm Bill
Web site
Provides news, transcripts, and loan rates on the 2008 farm bill.
Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion
Web site
Works to improve the health and well-being of Americans by developing and promoting dietary guidance that links scientific research to the nutrition needs of consumers.
Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP)
Web site
Provides federal funds for meals and snacks to licensed public and nonprofit child care centers and family and group child care homes for preschool children. Funds are also provided for meals and snacks served at after-school programs for school-age children, and to adult day care centers serving chronically impaired adults or people over age 60.
Child Nutrition Programs
Web site
Lists state agencies administering the Child Nutrition Programs, guidance, regulations, policy, and reimbursement rates.
Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP)
Web site
Helps supplement the diets of low-income needy persons, including elderly people, by providing them with emergency food and nutrition assistance.
Food & Nutrition Information Center
Web site
Provides a directory to resources for consumers, nutrition and health professionals, educators and government personnel. Offers printable educational materials, government reports, research papers and more.
Food and Society
Web site
Supports the creation and expansion of community-based food systems that are locally owned and controlled, environmentally sound, and health promoting. Focuses on three primary areas: market-based change, institutional support, and public policy.
Food Assistance and Nutrition Programs
Web site
Lists various food and nutrition programs, publications, and maps.
Food Security
Web site
Provides resources for food security measurement, biosecurity challenges, and food security research.
Food Systems & Rural Development: Expert Resource Directory
Web site
Identifies farmers, educators and community leaders to serve as expert resources on subjects ranging from agricultural trade to biotech and farm policy.
Foundation Funding Guide: Child and Adolescent Nutrition and Physical Activity
Web site
Lists state and national foundations with an interest in child and adolescent nutrition and physical activity.
Guide to Assessing Food Stamp Application Forms
Web site
Designed to help state personnel analyze and improve their form’s organization, wording, and directions. Also helps to ensure their forms comply with food stamp regulations.
Hunger in the U.S.
Web site
Discusses hunger and poverty in the United States, provides statistics and data, results of surveys and FAQs. Provides access to related reports.
Local Community Action Agency Directory
Web site
A directory of local community action agencies (CAAs) developed by VirtualCAP.org that provides contact information by either state or agency name.
MyPyramid: Steps to a Healthier You
Web site
Replaces the original food guide pyramid. Helps in choosing proper foods and amounts by providing an estimate of what and how much is needed to eat based on age, gender, and activity level.
National Association for State Community Services Programs State Contacts
Web site
Provides contacts for state community services programs funded through the Community Services Block Grant (CSBG) and the U.S. Department of Energy's Weatherization Assistance Program (DOE/WAP).
Online Information About Key Low-Income Benefit Programs
Web site
Links to state-by-state information on food stamps, Medicaid, SCHIP, TANF and child care.
School Breakfast Program
Web site
Provides cash assistance to States to operate nonprofit breakfast programs in schools and residential childcare institutions.
SNAP Informational Materials in Other Languages
Web site
Offers links to materials in languages other than English. Materials are designed for partners, advocates, and the public to distribute to consumers who may be eligible to participate in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly the Food Stamp Program.
Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity
Web site
A foundation-led, non-partisan initiative aimed at ensuring that political leaders take significant actions to reduce poverty and increase opportunity in the United States.
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)
Web site
Helps low-income people buy food, such as fruits, vegetables and whole grains, they need for good health. Works with State and local agencies, advocates, employers, community and faith-based organizations, and others to reach eligible low-income people who are not currently participating in SNAP and share information about its nutritional benefits.
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) Pre-Screening Eligibility Tool
Web site
Determines potential eligibility to receive Food Stamp benefits based on amounts of earnings, rent or mortgage, utility bills, child support, day care expenses, medical bills (60 or older, or disabled), child support payments or SSI, social security or VA payments.
WHY (World Hunger Year)
Web site
Offers job training, education and after school programs; access to housing and healthcare; microcredit and entrepreneurial opportunities; teaches people to grow their own food; and assists small farmers with the intent of reducing hunger and poverty. Offers a national hunger hotline for Americans in need of food assistance: 1-866-3-HUNGRY (1-866-348-6479).
Maps & Map Collections
Food Stamp Program Map Machine
Interactive
Geographic coverage: United States
Interactive, web-based mapping utility that illustrates program participation and benefit levels down to the county level. Shows per capita participation, per capita benefits, changes from year to year, and more. The map's tools allow you to call up tabular data for the county, State, or Nation.
Date: 2003
Summer Food Service Program Map Machine
Interactive
Geographic coverage: United States
Interactive mapping utility which integrates three different types of information--Census data, SFSP participation records, and Common Core Data--and provides visual displays of SFSP sponsors and sites in geographic relation to concentrated areas of child poverty. Also provides all the underlying data in tabular format for more in depth analysis. Displays maps and data for the entire Nation or a particular State, county, or neighborhood.
Date: 2007
Regulations, Forms & Other Useful Documents
Access to Affordable and Nutritious Food: Measuring and Understanding Food Deserts and Their Consequences
Sponsoring organization: U.S. Department of Agriculture
Describes the issue of limited access to nutritious food in poor and/or rural areas and the measures in place to counteract it. Results stem from a study on the relationship between access to full-service grocery stores and the instance of poor nutrition, obesity, and other diet-related diseases.
Date: 06 / 2009
Access to Healthy Foods in Low-Income Neighborhoods: Opportunities for Public Policy
Sponsoring organization: Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity
Discusses the prevalence of low-income people, minorities, and rural residents suffering the highest rates of preventable, diet-related diseases that are linked to insufficient consumption of healthful foods.
Date: 2008
Almanac of Hunger and Poverty in America
Sponsoring organization: Feeding America
Provides national and state statistics on hunger and poverty. Includes an overview of federal nutrition programs.
Date: 2007
Can Food Stamps Do More to Improve Food Choices? An Economic Perspective—How Can We Tell If We Are Making a Difference? ERS Efforts To Improve Evaluation of Nutrition Outcomes
Author(s): Elizabeth Frazao, Joanne F. Guthrie, David Smallwood
Sponsoring organization: U.S. Department of Agriculture
Discusses ERS efforts to improve the tools for evaluation of nutrition outcomes.
Date: 09 / 2007
Can Low-Income Americans Afford a Healthy Diet?
Author(s): Elise Golan, Hayden Stewart, Fred Kuchler, Diansheng Dong
Sponsoring organization: USDA Economic Research Service
Discusses how low-income households tend to consume less nutritious diets than other households, and they do not meet Federal recommendations for consumption of fruit, vegetables, whole grains, and low-fat dairy products.
Journal citation: Amber Waves Volume 2008 Issue Nov.
Date: 11 / 2008
Characteristics of Food Stamp Households: Fiscal Year 2007
Author(s): Kari Wolkwitz, Joshua Leftin
Sponsoring organization: Mathematica Policy Research, Inc.
Presents an overview of eligibility requirements and benefit levels, as well as characteristics of Food Stamp Program households and participants nationwide.
Date: 09 / 2008
Comparison of Household Food Security in Canada and the United States (Report Summary)
Author(s): Mark Nord, Heather Hopwood
Sponsoring organization: USDA Economic Research Service
Examines the extent to which the basic food needs of households in Canada and the United States are met. Compares rates of food insecurity
in economic and demographic subgroups of both populations.
Date: 12 / 2008
Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2005
Sponsoring organization: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services
Updated every five years, this document contains new guidelines regarding good dietary habits, promoting health, and reducing risk for major chronic diseases.
Date: 01 / 2005
Dynamics of Food Insecurity in Rural America: Are There Regional Differences?
Author(s): Christine M. Olson, Emily O. Miller, Josephine A. Swanson, Myla S. Strawderman
Sponsoring organization: Northeast Regional Center for Rural Development
Examines regional differences in the
changes across time in the prevalence of food insecurity among poor rural families with children. Identifies factors associated with changes in food insecurity status.
Date: 04 / 2005
Food Assistance Landscape: FY 2008 Annual Report
Author(s): Victor Oliveira
Sponsoring organization: USDA Economic Research Service
Uses preliminary data from the Food and Nutrition Service to examine trends in the programs through fiscal 2008. Describes the five largest food assistance programs—Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), the National School Lunch Program, the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), the Child and Adult Care Food Program, and the School Breakfast Program.
Date: 04 / 2009
Food Assistance: How Strong Is the Safety Net?
Author(s): Michael LeBlanc, Biing-Hwan Lin, David Smallwood
Sponsoring organization: USDA Economic Research Service
Discusses that food assistance programs increase food spending and combat poverty, but their effect on nutrition is more uncertain.
Journal citation: Amber Waves Volume 2006 Issue Sept.
Date: 09 / 2006
Food Insecurity in Households with Children: Prevalence, Severity, and Household Characteristics
Author(s): Mark Nord
Sponsoring organization: USDA Economic Research Service
Describes the prevalence and severity of food insecurity in households with children as of 2007, the trends since 1999, and characteristics of households affected by food insecurity.
Date: 09 / 2009
Food Insecurity in Poor Rural Families with Children: A Human Capital Perspective
Author(s): Christine M. Olson
Sponsoring organization: Rural Families Speak Project
Policy brief discussing food insecurity in rural families. Includes discussion of contributing factors, as well as policy implications.
Date: 03 / 2006
Food Stamp and School Lunch Programs Alleviate Food Insecurity in Rural America
Author(s): Kristin Smith, Sarah Savage
Sponsoring organization: Carsey Institute
Details how the Food Stamp and the National School Lunch Programs are vital parts of the safety net in rural America, helping a large number of children and others combat hunger and food insecurity.
Date: 2007
Food Stamp Nutrition Education Plan Guidance
Sponsoring organization: U.S. Department of Agriculture
Designed to guide state leaders in completing their food stamp nutrition education plan. Document highlights 2009 changes in policy and procedure.
Date: 01 / 2009
Food Stamps and Obesity: What We Know and What It Means
Author(s): Michele Ver Ploeg, Katherine Ralston
Sponsoring organization: USDA Economic Research Service
Reports that food stamp benefits do not increase obesity for most program participants, but there is a potential link for some subgroups.
Journal citation: Amber Waves Volume 2008 Issue June
Date: 06 / 2008
Food Stamps, Federalism, and Working Families
Author(s): Kenneth Finegold
Sponsoring organization: Urban Institute
Provides an overview of the role food stamps play in the lives of working families, and presents data on the administration of the programs in each state.
Date: 08 / 2008
Homeless, Runaway and Migrant Children are Now Automatically Eligible for Free School Meals
Sponsoring organization: Food Research and Action Center
Describes a provision of the Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act of 2004, which makes migrant, homeless and runaway children and youth automatically eligible for free school breakfast and lunch.
Date: 05 / 2006
Household Food Security in the United States, 2008
Author(s): Mark Nord, Margaret Andrews, Steven Carlson
Sponsoring organization: U.S. Department of Agriculture
Analyzes the rates of food security in the United States -- whether or not a household had access at all times to enough food for an active, healthy life for all household members -- and finds that 14.6 percent of all American households (and a greater percentage of rural households) were "food insecure."
Date: 11 / 2009
Informing Food and Nutrition Assistance Policy: 10 Years of Research at ERS
Sponsoring organization: U.S. Department of Agriculture
Highlights some of the key research conducted during the program’s first decade.
Date: 12 / 2007
National Meals On Wheels Rolls Out Into Rural Areas
Author(s): Hilary Gibson
Sponsoring organization: Caregiver.com Inc.
Discusses the history of Meals on Wheels and their expansion into rural parts of the country due to the ability to offer individually packaged, frozen meals with foods that are simple to reheat as needed and can be ordered a month at a time.
Journal citation: Rural Caregiver Pages: 1
Date: 2005
Opening a Farmers Market on Federal Property: A Guide for Market Operators and Building Managers
Author(s): Karen Beach, Frank Giblin
Sponsoring organization: U.S. Department of Agriculture
Addresses issues involved in starting a farmers market on federal property, including: security, insurance needs, parking, and the use of utilities and amenities.
Date: 09 / 2009
Overweight and Obesity in the South: Prevalence and Related Health Care Costs Among Population Groups
Sponsoring organization: Southern Rural Development Center
Results of a study used to determine the prevalence of overweight and obesity in the Southern regions. Displays data by age, gender, race/ethnicity, income, and education level.
Journal citation: Food Assistance of the South Issue 13
Date: 07 / 2007
Profiles of Participants in the National School Lunch Program: Data from Two National Surveys
Author(s): Constance Newman, Katherine Ralston
Sponsoring organization: USDA Economic Research Service
Reports new estimates of NSLP participant
characteristics using two national surveys: the 2001 Panel of the Survey of Income and Program Participation and the 1999-2002 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.
Date: 08 / 2006
Rural America Depends on the Food Stamp Program to Make Ends Meet
Author(s): Kristin Smith, Priscilla Salant
Sponsoring organization: Carsey Institute
Discusses how the federal Food Stamp Program benefits the most vulnerable and needy populations, including significant numbers of rural children, disabled and elderly persons, and low-income working families.
Date: 2005
Rural Food Access Patterns: Elderly Open-Country and In-Town Residents
Sponsoring organization: Iowa State University
Examines how rural households in two high poverty Iowa counties access food for daily living. Discusses grocery store consolidation, which has resulted in the loss of many rural small town grocery stores.
Date: 06 / 2004
Rural Healthy People 2010: Nutrition and Overweight Concerns in Rural Areas
Author(s): Tom Tai-Seale, Coleman Chandler
Sponsoring organization: Southwest Rural Health Research Center
Addresses rural health issues associated
with the Healthy People 2010 focus area on
nutrition and overweight.
Date: 2003
Rural Healthy People 2010: Nutrition and Overweight Concerns in Rural Areas: A Literature Review
Author(s): Tom Tai-Seale, Coleman Chandler
Sponsoring organization: Southwest Rural Health Research Center
Detailed literature review of rural health issues associated with the Healthy People 2010 focus area on nutrition and overweight.
Date: 2003
Social Assistance Programs and Outcomes: Food Assistance in the Context of Welfare Reform
Author(s): Sonya Kostova Huffman, Helen H. Jensen
Sponsoring organization: Center for Agricultural and Rural Development
Examines the interaction among food stamps, labor force participation, and food insecurity status of low-income households under different program designs and economic conditions.
Date: 09 / 2006
Starved for Access: Life in Rural America's Food Deserts
Author(s): Lois Wright Morton, Troy C. Blanchard
Sponsoring organization: Rural Sociological Society
Discusses rural areas which are considered "food
deserts," areas with limited, if any, grocery stores.
Journal citation: Rural Realities Volume 1 Issue 4
Date: 03 / 2007
State Indicator Report on Fruits and Vegetables, 2009
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Provides information on fruit and vegetable (F&V) consumption, policy, and environmental support within each state. Addresses issues associated with nutritionally underserved areas.
Date: 09 / 2009
State of the States 2008: A Profile of Food and Nutrition Programs Across the Nation
Sponsoring organization: Food Research and Action Center
Provides food stamp profiles in each state, discusses child, school, and adult nutrition programs, and highlights how each state is meeting the needs of its hungry people. Includes statistics and data.
Date: 11 / 2008
Strengthening Our Nation's Food Assistance Programs
Sponsoring organization: Southern Rural Development Center
Highlights important and practical contributions made by RIDGE researchers through studies that have focused on providing access to healthy foods at affordable prices, improving nutrition to build a healthy workforce, and responding to diverse needs.
Date: 2007
Struggling To Feed the Family: What Does It Mean To Be Food Insecure?
Author(s): Mark Nord, Mark Prell
Sponsoring organization: USDA Economic Research Service
Provides an overview of food insecurity, how it is measured, and the impact that food insecurity has.
Journal citation: Amber Waves Volume 2007 Issue June
Date: 06 / 2007
Trends in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Participation Rates: 2000 to 2007
Author(s): Joshua Leftin, Kari Wolkwitz
Sponsoring organization: Mathematica Policy Research, Inc.
Provides 2007 participation rates for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). SNAP helps low-income individuals purchase food so that they can obtain a nutritious diet.
Date: 06 / 2009
Visions of the Rural Milieu: United States
Author(s): Brian Dabson
Sponsoring organization: Rural Policy Research Institute
An assessment of the current status of agriculture in the U.S. and its relationship to: the national and rural economies. Describes current demographic trends impacting rural America and the potential of the rural environment to contribute to long-term sustainable development and food security.
Date: 07 / 2008
What Factors Account for State-to-State Differences in Food Security?
Author(s): Judi Bartfeld, Rachel Dunifon, Mark Nord, Steven Carlson
Sponsoring organization: USDA Economic Research Service
Discusses the prevalence of food security in a state, including characteristics of households, income, employment, and household structure, average wages, cost of housing, levels of participation in food assistance programs, and tax policies.
Date: 11 / 2006
Journals
Amber Waves
Published quarterly and covers food, farming, natural resources, and rural America.
Organizations
Community Food Security Coalition (CFSC)
National organization
Dedicated to building strong, sustainable, local and regional food systems that ensure access to affordable, nutritious, and culturally appropriate food for all people at all times.
Family-to-Family
Nonprofit/Foundation
A hunger relief program aimed at
helping profoundly poor and hungry rural American families. Links families with more to families with much less.
Feeding America
Nonprofit/Foundation
Nation's largest hunger relief organization. Network of 200+ food banks and food-rescue programs. Includes a directory of food banks by zip code or state. Previously, America's Second Harvest.
Food Research and Action Center (FRAC)
National organization
Works to improve public policies to eradicate hunger and undernutrition in the United States. Serves as the hub of an anti-hunger network of thousands of individuals and agencies across the country.
Meals on Wheels Association of America (MOWAA)
National organization
Works to bring meals to seniors in need including men and women who are elderly, homebound, disabled, frail, or at risk.
School Nutrition Association (SNA)
National organization
Strives to see that all children have access to healthy school meals and nutrition education.
U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)
Federal government
Offers numerous funding opportunities such as Rural Economic Development Grants, Rural Business Opportunity Grants, Farm Labor Grants plus others.
USDA Food and Nutrition Service (USDA FNS)
Federal government
Increases food security and reduces hunger in partnership with cooperating organizations by providing children and low-income people access to food, a healthful diet, and nutrition education in a manner that supports American agriculture and inspires public confidence.
Women, Infants, and Children (WIC)
Federal government
Protects the health of low-income women, infants, and children up to age five by providing nutritious foods to supplement diets, information on healthy eating, and referrals to health care.
Terms & Acronyms
Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) Allows for the distribution of food stamp benefits via a plastic debit card. These cards can be used at the point-of-sale terminals or retailers authorized by USDA to accept food stamp benefits.
Food Gleaning Practice of gathering the extra crops in the field after a harvest and donating them to disadvantaged individuals.
Food Insecurity Limited or uncertain availability of nutritionally adequate and safe food. At times during the year, unable to acquire enough food to meet the needs of all family members due to insufficient money or other resources for food.
Food Recovery Collection of wholesome food for distribution to the poor and hungry.
Food Rescue Collection of prepared foods from the food service industry.
Food Security Having access, at all times, to enough food for an active, healthy life. Ready availability of nutritionally adequate and safe foods, and an assured ability to acquire acceptable foods in socially acceptable ways without resorting to emergency food supplies, scavenging, stealing, or other coping strategies.
Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services (FNS) Federal agency that administers the Food Stamp program.
High Food Security No reported indications of food-access problems or limitations in the household.
Low Food Security Food-insecure households which obtained enough food to avoid substantially disrupting their eating patterns or reducing food intake, by using a variety of coping strategies, such as eating less varied diets, participating in Federal food assistance programs, or getting emergency food from community food pantries.
Marginal Food Security One or two reported indications - typically of anxiety over food sufficiency or shortage of food in the house. Little or no indication of changes in diets or food intake.
Nonperishable Food Collection Collection of processed foods with long shelf lives.
Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunities Reconciliation Act (PRWORA) Known as "welfare reform." PRWORA implemented a number of significant changes in the welfare system such as the imposition of time limits and work requirements on recipients, and the devolution of welfare program administration authority to state governments.
Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) Provides block grants to states to administer programs to assist needy families.
Very Low Food Security Food-insecure households in which normal eating patterns of one or more household members are disrupted and food intake is reduced at times during the year because of insufficient money or other resources for food. In previous reports, these households were described as "food insecure with hunger."
Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) Supplemental Nutrition Program which serves to safeguard the health of low-income women, infants, & children up to age five who are at nutritional risk by providing nutritious foods to supplement diets, information on healthy eating, and referrals to health care.
Success Stories
Kentucky - Kid Power
The focus of this program was to enroll eligible children and educate their families about healthy nutrition, proper diet, exercise, and the importance of weight management in improving their overall health.
Vermont - Springfield Family Center, Inc. USDA Rural Development funds helped this not-for-profit community food pantry and emergency services center successfully apply for a $48,050 Community Facilities Grant to replace their old and inefficient furnace, thus allowing the center to continue to provide its services without added heating costs.
Waste-Free Lunches Lists success stories, submitted by teachers, administrators, parents, and various environmental organizations from all across the United States, which show what schools and others are doing to reduce lunchtime waste
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