A Research Briefing from WholeFam
Where America Stands: Food Security in Our Households
A research briefing from WholeFam, built from USDA data. The facts, plainly told — and what a household can actually do about them.
Source: USDA Economic Research Service, Household Food Security in the United States in 2024 (ERR-358). Published September 2026.
The Situation in Numbers
Food insecurity in America, 2024
of U.S. households were food insecure at some point in 2024
18.3 million households — about 1 in 7
people lived in food-insecure households
including 7.3 million children
experienced very low food security
7.2 million households — disrupted eating patterns and reduced intake
states plus D.C. saw significant increases
Zero states saw decreases between 2019–21 and 2022–24
What "Food Insecure" Actually Means
It's not hunger as a feeling — it's a household condition
Food insecurity is a household-level condition: at times during the year, a household was uncertain of having, or unable to acquire, enough food to meet the needs of all its members because of insufficient money or other resources. It comes in two levels:
Diets managed through coping strategies: less varied meals, food assistance programs, and community pantries. The household gets enough to eat, but not always the way it wants.
Normal eating patterns were disrupted and food intake was reduced. At times, there simply wasn't enough to eat.
Who Is Most Affected
Food insecurity follows income and isolation
It touches every kind of household — but it concentrates where money is tightest and support is thinnest.
The Trend
Need has risen sharply since 2022
After years of improvement, need has risen sharply since 2022 and has not come back down. 2024's rate is significantly higher than every year from 2016 through 2021.
Where You Live Matters
Every state has a food insecurity story
State household food insecurity rates, USDA 2022–2024 averages. U.S. average: 13.3%. Even the "best" state — North Dakota at 9% — means about 1 in 11 households. There is no place in America where this isn't someone's next-door reality.
Hover or tap any state to see its household food insecurity rate. U.S. average: 13.3%
| Rank | State | Rate | vs. U.S. avg (13.3%) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arkansas | 19.4% | +6.1 |
| 2 | Kentucky | 18.8% | +5.5 |
| 3 | Louisiana | 17.7% | +4.4 |
| 4 | Texas | 17.6% | +4.3 |
| 5 | Mississippi | 17.3% | +4 |
| 6 | Oklahoma | 16.9% | +3.6 |
| 7 | Wyoming | 15.6% | +2.3 |
| 8 | Nevada | 15% | +1.7 |
| 9 | Michigan | 14.7% | +1.4 |
| 10 | Georgia | 14.6% | +1.3 |
| 11 | New Mexico | 14.5% | +1.2 |
| 12 | Ohio | 14.2% | +0.9 |
| 13 | West Virginia | 14.1% | +0.8 |
| 14 | New York | 14% | +0.7 |
| 15 | Indiana | 13.7% | +0.4 |
| 16 | South Carolina | 13.5% | +0.2 |
| 17 | Tennessee | 13.3% | 0 |
| 18 | Florida | 13.3% | 0 |
| 19 | Illinois | 13.3% | 0 |
| 20 | Missouri | 13.3% | 0 |
| 21 | Arizona | 13.1% | -0.2 |
| 22 | Alaska | 13% | -0.3 |
| 23 | Maine | 12.9% | -0.4 |
| 24 | Nebraska | 12.7% | -0.6 |
| 25 | Idaho | 12.6% | -0.7 |
| 26 | California | 12.5% | -0.8 |
| 27 | Kansas | 12.5% | -0.8 |
| 28 | Oregon | 12.5% | -0.8 |
| 29 | Virginia | 12.4% | -0.9 |
| 30 | Alabama | 12.1% | -1.2 |
| 31 | Connecticut | 12.1% | -1.2 |
| 32 | Wisconsin | 12% | -1.3 |
| 33 | North Carolina | 11.8% | -1.5 |
| 34 | Massachusetts | 11.7% | -1.6 |
| 35 | Montana | 11.7% | -1.6 |
| 36 | Maryland | 11.5% | -1.8 |
| 37 | Utah | 11.5% | -1.8 |
| 38 | Washington | 11% | -2.3 |
| 39 | Pennsylvania | 10.9% | -2.4 |
| 40 | Delaware | 10.8% | -2.5 |
| 41 | Hawaii | 10.8% | -2.5 |
| 42 | Iowa | 10.8% | -2.5 |
| 43 | Rhode Island | 10.6% | -2.7 |
| 44 | Colorado | 10.5% | -2.8 |
| 45 | District of Columbia | 10.3% | -3 |
| 46 | Minnesota | 9.9% | -3.4 |
| 47 | New Jersey | 9.8% | -3.5 |
| 48 | South Dakota | 9.5% | -3.8 |
| 49 | Vermont | 9.4% | -3.9 |
| 50 | New Hampshire | 9.1% | -4.2 |
| 51 | North Dakota | 9% | -4.3 |
The Direction of Travel
No state got better — 28 states plus D.C. got worse
Between 2019–21 and 2022–24, 28 states plus D.C. saw statistically significant increases in food insecurity. Zero states saw decreases. Rising costs and the end of pandemic-era supports are visible in the data.
States with statistically significant increases include:
What WholeFam Is Doing About It
The Nourishment Directory
WholeFam is building the Nourishment Directory — a free, searchable, nationwide directory of places where a household can get or give free food: food banks, free food gardens, free gardening resources, and community food projects whose whole mission is feeding people, with services open to everyone regardless of background.
We are building it state by state, starting where the need is deepest — Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Texas, Mississippi, Oklahoma, and seven more states at 14.6% household food insecurity or higher — so anyone can find what exists near them, and so the organizations doing this work can find each other.
How WholeFam Researches and Builds Trailguides
For Any Household, Any Situation: The WholeFam Trailguide
Facts alone don't feed anyone. So WholeFam turns research into trailguides — step-by-step paths that meet a household exactly where it is, in any situation, and walk it toward food self-sufficiency in its own area. Every trailguide is built the same careful way, through our seven-stage research process:
Need Identification
We listen to what households actually face, situation by situation — a pantry that runs empty on the 20th, a family with a yard and no tools, a senior who can't garden but can tend a pot.
Knowledge Gathering
We search across cultures, traditions, and lived practice for the best practical knowledge on growing, finding, and sharing free food.
Synthesis
We triangulate the strongest sources into simple, doable steps.
Safety Gate
Everything passes a safety review before it reaches you — no medical claims, no risky practices, clear limits.
Expert Review
Two subject-matter experts review each guide before it's released.
Field Test
Real households try the steps and tell us what actually works.
Publication
Only then does a trailguide reach the public, and it keeps improving as field results come in.
Whether your situation is "I need food this week" or "I want my household to grow more of its own food this year," a trailguide meets you there — with the free food gardens, food banks, and growing knowledge near you, matched to what you have and where you live.
U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service. Household Food Security in the United States in 2024, ERR-358. State-level figures are 2022–2024 averages from the Current Population Survey Food Security Supplement. Compiled and verified by WholeFam, September 2026.