Hunger and Poverty Statistics

Poverty 1

• In 2006, nearly 37 million people (12.3%) were in poverty.
• In 2006, 7.6 (9.8%) million families were in poverty.
• In 2006, 20.2 million (10.8%) of people aged 18-64 were in poverty.
• In 2006, 12.8 million (17.4%) children under the age of 18 were in poverty.
• In 2006, 3.4 million (9.4%) seniors 65 and older were in poverty.
        

Food Insecurity (Low Food Security and Very Low Security) and Food Insecurity With Hunger (Very Low Security) 2

• In 2006, 35.5 million Americans lived in food insecure households, 22.8 million adults and 12.6 million children.

• In 2006, 10.9% of households (12.6 million households) were food insecure, a statistically insignificant decrease from 11% (12.6 million households) in 2005.

• In 2006, 4% of households (4.6 million households) experienced very low food security, a small increase from 3.9% in  2005.

• In 2006, households with children reported food insecurity at almost double the rate for those without children, 15.6% compared to 8.5%.

• In 2006, households that were more likely to experience food insecurity were households with children, households with children headed by single women (30.4%) or men (17%), households with incomes below the poverty line (36.3%), Black households (21.8%) and Hispanic households (19.5%).

• In 2006, 5.9% of households with seniors ( 1.59 million households) were food insecure (low food security and very low food security), a statistically insignificant decrease from 6% ( 1.6 million households) in 2005. 

Use of Emergency Food Assistance and Federal Food Assistance Programs

• In 2006, 3.3% of all U.S. households (3.8 million households) accessed emergency food from a food pantry one or more times, or 21% of all food-insecure households. 3

• In 2006, food insecure (low food security or very low food security) households were 19 times more likely than food-secure households to have obtained food from a food pantry, an increase in likelihood from 17 times in 2005.4

• In 2006, food insecure (low food security or very low food security) households were 15 times more likely than food-secure households to have eaten a meal at an emergency kitchen, an decrease in likelihood from 19 times in 2005 . 5

• In 2006, 55.5% of food-insecure households participated in at least one of the three major Federal food assistance programs – Food Stamp Program, The National School Lunch Program, and the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children, remaining unchanged from 55.6% in 2005. 6

• America’s Second Harvest Network provides emergency food assistance to an estimated 25 million low-income people annually, an 8% increase from 23 million since Hunger In America 2001.7  

• America's Second Harvest provides emergency food assistance to approximately 4.5 million different people in any given week. 8

• Among members of the America's Second Harvest network, 65% of pantries, 61% of kitchens, and 52% of shelters reported that there had been an increase since 2001 in the number of clients who come to their emergency food program sites. 9

Top Ten States In Prevalence of Food Insecurity, Average 2004-2006 10

U.S.                         11.3%
MS                          18.1%
NM                         16.1%
TX                          15.9%
SC                          14.7%
OK                         14.6%
UT                          14.5%
LA                          14.4%
AR                          14.3%
KY                         13.6%
AZ                          13.1%  

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1 U.S. Census Bureau. Carmen  DeNavas-Walt, B. Proctor, C. Lee.  Income, Poverty, and Heath Insurance Coverage in the United States:  2006.
2 USDA. Mark Nord, M. Andrews, S. Carlson.  Household Food Security in the United States, 2006.
3 USDA. Mark Nord, M. Andrews, S. Carlson. Household Food Security in the United States, 2006.
4 USDA. Mark Nord, M. Andrews, S. Carlson. Household Food Security in the United States, 2006.
5 USDA. Mark Nord, M. Andrews, S. Carlson. Household Food Security in the United States, 2006.
6 USDA. Mark Nord, M. Andrews, S. Carlson. Household Food Security in the United States, 2006.
7 Rhoda Cohen, M. Kim, J. Ohls. Hunger In America 2006. America’s Second Harvest.
8 Rhoda Cohen, M. Kim, J. Ohls. Hunger In America 2006. America’s Second Harvest.
9 Rhoda Cohen, M. Kim, J. Ohls. Hunger In America 2006. America’s Second Harvest.
10 USDA. Mark Nord, M. Andrews, S. Carlson. Household Food Security in the United States, 2006.