ERS Charts of Note

Subscribe to our Charts of Note series, which highlights economic research and analysis on agriculture, food, the environment, and rural America. Each week, this series highlights charts of interest from current and past ERS research.

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More than half of all food-insecure U.S. households had at least one adult working full time

Wednesday, October 30, 2024

In 2023, more than half of all food-insecure households in the United States had one or more adult members employed full time. USDA, Economic Research Service (ERS) monitors the prevalence of U.S. household food insecurity through an annual survey and provides information about the characteristics of food-insecure households, including their employment status. The employment status for each household is measured using the combined employment status of all adult household members. Households are placed into mutually exclusive employment categories based on the employment status of the adult most attached to the labor market. In 2023, households with adults employed full time made up the largest share of food-insecure households at 56 percent, a share that has remained stable since 2017. Households with one or more adults employed part time because it was the only job available (called part time for economic reasons) comprised the smallest share of food-insecure households at 2 percent. Households with unemployed adults looking for work also made up a small share of the food-insecure population at 3.5 percent. The remaining food-insecure households had one or more adults who were retired, disabled, employed part time for noneconomic reasons, or not in the labor force. An interactive visualization and the underlying downloadable data for prevalence, severity (low and very low food security), and distribution of food insecurity by household employment status can be found on the ERS Interactive Charts and Highlights page.

USDA’s National School Lunch Program served about 241 billion lunches from fiscal years 1969 through 2023

Wednesday, October 9, 2024

USDA’s National School Lunch Program (NSLP) served 4.7 billion lunches in fiscal year (FY) 2023, and nearly 241 billion lunches since FY 1969. Students are typically eligible for either a free, reduced-price, or full-price lunch through the program depending on their household’s income. In many schools, the NSLP allows all students to be served free meals regardless of their household income, a policy colloquially known as “universal free meals.” About 136 billion, or 56.4 percent, of all NSLP lunches served since FY 1969 were served for free or at a reduced price, and that share has been increasing over time. The share of lunches served for free or at a reduced price rose from 15.1 percent in FY 1969 to 74.1 percent in FY 2019. An even higher share of lunches was served for free or at a reduced price from FY 2020 through FY 2022 largely because of USDA waivers allowing meals to be provided free of charge to all students nationwide during the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. USDA pandemic waivers also allowed schools to serve meals through the Summer Food Service Program or the NSLP’s Seamless Summer Option in those years, while the temporary Pandemic Electronic Benefit Transfer (P-EBT) program reimbursed eligible families for the value of school meals missed because of pandemic-related disruptions to school operations. The waivers expired in Summer 2022, while P-EBT expired at the end of FY 2023. Spending on the program has also increased over time, from an inflation-adjusted $1.3 billion (in 2023 dollars) in FY 1969 to $15.8 billion in FY 2023. A version of this chart appears on the USDA, Economic Research Service (ERS) National School Lunch Program page within the Child Nutrition Programs topic page, as well as in the ERS report The National School Lunch Program: Background, Trends, and Issues, 2024 Edition, published September 2024.

Almost 9 percent of SNAP and P-EBT benefits were redeemed online by end of FY 2023

Thursday, October 3, 2024

USDA’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) Online Purchasing Pilot allows households in participating States to purchase groceries online from select authorized retailers using SNAP and Pandemic Electronic Benefit Transfer (P-EBT) benefits. The pilot was originally slated to roll out in fiscal years (FY) 2019 and 2020. Given the onset of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, USDA rapidly expanded the pilot beginning midway through FY 2020 to additional States and retailers. By the end of FY 2020, online benefit redemption was available at seven retailers in 45 States and Washington, DC. With the expansion to Alaska in June 2023, online redemption became available in all States, and the pilot had expanded to 341 retailers by the end of FY 2023. Online SNAP and P-EBT benefit redemption grew steadily from FY 2020 to FY 2023. During April–June 2020 (the first quarter for which complete information on online redemptions was available), $234 million in benefits were redeemed online, or just less than 1 percent of total SNAP and P-EBT redemptions. By the last quarter of FY 2023 (July–September), the value redeemed online had increased almost tenfold to $2.3 billion, or 8.8 percent of all redemptions. This chart appears in the USDA, Economic Research Service’s Food and Nutrition Assistance Landscape: Fiscal Year 2023 Annual Report, released June 2024.

Food insecurity ranged from 7.4 percent in New Hampshire to 18.9 percent in Arkansas in 2021–23

Wednesday, September 11, 2024

Food-insecure households sometimes have difficulty providing enough food for all their members because of a lack of resources. USDA, Economic Research Service (ERS) monitors the extent of food insecurity in U.S. households at the national and State levels through an annual U.S. Census Bureau survey. State-level estimates are obtained by averaging 3 years of data to generate a larger sample size in each State. This provides more precise estimates and an improved ability to detect differences across States. The estimated prevalence rates of food insecurity during 2021–23 ranged from 7.4 percent in New Hampshire to 18.9 percent in Arkansas. The estimated national 3-year average for all States was 12.2 percent. The prevalence of food insecurity was statistically significantly higher than the national average in 7 States (Arkansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, South Carolina, and Texas). It was statistically significantly lower than the national average in 17 States (California, Colorado, Hawaii, Iowa, Massachusetts, Maryland, Minnesota, North Dakota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Virginia, Vermont, Washington, and Wisconsin), as well as Washington, DC. In the remaining 26 States, differences from the national average were not statistically significant. An interactive food insecurity map can be found on the ERS Interactive Charts and Highlights topic page that allows users to view two measures of food insecurity across multiple years for each State. Users of that page can see State trends in food insecurity, how States compare with national food insecurity prevalence rates, and how States compare with one another. This map appears on the ERS Key Statistics & Graphics topic page.

Prevalence of U.S. household food insecurity increased in 2023

Wednesday, September 4, 2024

In 2023, 13.5 percent of U.S. households (18.0 million households) were food insecure at some time during the year, meaning they had difficulty providing enough food for all their members because of a lack of resources. The prevalence of food insecurity in 2023 was statistically significantly higher than the 12.8 percent recorded in 2022. USDA’s Economic Research Service (ERS) monitors the food security status of households in the United States through an annual nationwide survey. Very low food security is a more severe form of food insecurity in which the food intake of some household members was reduced and normal eating patterns were disrupted sometime during the year. The 2023 prevalence of very low food security among households was 5.1 percent (6.8 million households), unchanged from the 5.1 percent in 2022. This chart appears on the ERS Key Statistics & Graphics page and in the ERS report Household Food Security in the United States in 2023, published September 4, 2024.

SNAP participation varied across States in fiscal year 2023

Wednesday, August 28, 2024

In fiscal year (FY) 2023, USDA’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) served a monthly average of 42.1 million people in the 50 States and Washington, DC, representing 12.6 percent of the population. SNAP is the United States’ largest domestic nutrition assistance program, accounting for about two-thirds of USDA food and nutrition assistance spending in recent years. SNAP is available to most households with limited incomes and assets, subject to certain work and immigration status requirements. Participating households receive monthly benefits through an electronic benefit transfer card, which can be used like a debit card to buy food items at authorized retailers. SNAP participation varies across States, influenced by differences in the demographic characteristics of the population, program administration, and economic conditions. In FY 2023, the share of residents receiving SNAP benefits in each State ranged from as high as 23.1 percent in New Mexico to as low as 4.6 percent in Utah. In 34 States, the share was between 8 and 16 percent. This map appears in USDA, Economic Research Service’s Charting the Essentials, last updated in July 2024.

SNAP benefit spending varied from FY 2020 to FY 2023 with changes to maximum benefit amounts and emergency allotments

Wednesday, July 31, 2024

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is the largest of USDA’s domestic food and nutrition assistance programs, accounting for about two-thirds of spending on these programs in recent years. Total SNAP spending increased following the declaration of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) public health emergency, peaking at $125.0 billion for the year in fiscal year (FY) 2021 and falling to $112.8 billion in FY 2023. Maximum benefit amounts were increased three times during this period in January 2021 (temporarily), October 2021 (with the revision of the Thrifty Food Plan), and October 2022 (an annual adjustment for inflation), with total regular benefit spending rising following each of these increases. SNAP households were also issued temporary emergency allotments to supplement their regular benefits beginning in March or April 2020, with a minimum emergency allotment amount being implemented in April 2021. Disaster supplement spending increased after each of these policy changes, but then fell off after emergency allotments ended following the February 2023 issuance. Total SNAP spending declined in FY 2023 by about 6 percent, as the drop in disaster supplement spending outweighed the higher spending from the 12.5-percent regular benefit adjustment. Together, these policy changes explain a large part of increased SNAP spending in the period after the pandemic’s onset in 2020. This chart is based on preliminary data released in December 2023 and appears in the USDA, Economic Research Service’s Food and Nutrition Assistance Landscape: Fiscal Year 2023 Annual Report, the Amber Waves article SNAP Spending Rose and Fell With Pandemic-Era Changes to Benefit Amounts, and was discussed in a recorded webinar.

Older adults’ share of SNAP participation rose from FY 2019 to 2022, while children’s share slightly fell

Tuesday, July 30, 2024

In fiscal year (FY) 2022, children accounted for about 40 percent of all participants in USDA’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), down from about 43 percent in FY 2019. In FY 2022, children younger than 5 made up nearly 12 percent of participants, while school-age children made up 28 percent. Adults ages 18-59 represented 42 percent of SNAP participants in FY 2022, similar to FY 2019. The share of the SNAP caseload for those age 60 and older grew to 18 percent in FY 2022 from about 16 percent in FY 2019. The caseload distribution shift over these 3 years from children to adults age 60 and older can mainly be attributed to an increase in adult SNAP participants rather than a decrease in children participants. While the estimated number of children participating in SNAP decreased to 15.5 million in FY 2022 from 15.9 million in FY 2019, the decrease was offset by larger increases in the number of adult participants. The estimated number of participating adults age 18-59 increased to 16.5 million in FY 2022 from 15.5 million in FY 2019, while the number of adults age 60 and over increased to 7.2 million from 5.8 million. FY 2022 is the latest year for which demographic data are available. The FY 2022 chart appears in the USDA, Economic Research Service’s Ag and Food Statistics: Charting the Essentials and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) topic page.

Total participation in USDA’s Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) continued to increase in FY 2023

Tuesday, July 16, 2024

USDA’s Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) has provided supplemental food packages, nutrition education, breastfeeding support, and health care referrals at no cost to low-income pregnant and postpartum women, infants younger than 1 year old, and children 1 to 5 years old who are at nutritional risk since 1974. More than half of WIC participants are children (55.0 percent), followed by women (22.6 percent), and infants (22.4 percent). Total participation in WIC increased for the first time in more than a decade in fiscal year (FY) 2022, and this increase continued in FY 2023. Participation averaged 6.57 million people a month in FY 2023, a 5-percent increase from 6.26 million in FY 2022. This was the second increase in overall participation since the record high of 9.18 million people in FY 2010 and resulted from increased numbers of participants in all three groups (women, infants, and children). FY 2023 was the first year since 2009 that the number of infants participating in WIC increased. This chart appears on the WIC Program topic page and in the USDA, Economic Research Service’s Food and Nutrition Assistance Landscape: Fiscal Year 2023 Annual Report, released June 12, 2024, and was discussed in a recorded webinar.

Temporary Pandemic Electronic Benefit Transfer (P-EBT) Program issued more than $70 billion in benefits from 2020 to 2023

Tuesday, July 9, 2024

USDA’s temporary Pandemic Electronic Benefit Transfer (P-EBT) program issued $70.9 billion in benefits from its inception in March 2020 through September 2023. Federal legislation passed in March 2020 authorized USDA to create the P-EBT program at the onset of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic in response to disruptions to onsite instruction at schools and the operation of the National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program. The P-EBT program provided benefits to qualified households with children in the 50 States, Washington, DC, and U.S. territories for the value of school meals that were forgone because of pandemic-related disruptions. These benefits could be used to help pay for groceries at retailers authorized to accept Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits. Initially, P-EBT program eligibility was limited to households with school-aged children eligible for free or reduced-price school meals (those with incomes up to 185 percent of the Federal poverty line). Subsequent legislation increased the amount qualifying households received and expanded the program to include more children (such as some households with children not yet enrolled in school) and to cover the summer months when schools typically are closed for instruction. Legislation also extended the program’s operations through September 2023. P-EBT benefits were distributed at different times, depending on pandemic-related disruptions to in-person instruction at schools and the timeliness of when States and territories were able to issue benefits. This chart appears in the USDA, Economic Research Service’s The Food and Nutrition Assistance Landscape: Fiscal Year 2023 Annual Report and Amber Waves article, USDA’s Temporary Pandemic Electronic Benefit Transfer (P-EBT) Program Issued $70.9 Billion in Benefits From 2020 to 2023, and was discussed in a recorded webinar.

USDA spending on food and nutrition assistance programs declined further in FY 2023

Wednesday, June 12, 2024

Federal spending on USDA’s food and nutrition assistance programs totaled $166.4 billion in fiscal year (FY) 2023, down 13 percent from $191.1 billion in FY 2022 and 18 percent from the peak of $202.4 billion in FY 2021 when adjusted for inflation to 2023 dollars. In FY 2023, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) spending fell 9 percent from the previous year’s inflation-adjusted amount to $112.8 billion despite an increase in participation and maximum benefit levels. This decline occurred because of the nationwide end of emergency allotments, which had temporarily raised all recipients’ benefits to at least the maximum for their household size beginning in March 2020. Spending on the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) totaled $6.6 billion—an increase of 11 percent from inflation-adjusted spending in FY 2022—reflecting increases in program participation and food costs per participant. Combined spending on child nutrition programs totaled $26.9 billion in FY 2023, falling 24 percent from the inflation-adjusted total in the previous year. FY 2023 marked the first full fiscal year of child nutrition program operation after Federal waivers allowing schools to serve free meals to all students and raising Federal reimbursements for each free meal served expired at the end of June 2022. Combined spending on other programs fell in FY 2023 primarily because of lower spending on Pandemic Electronic Benefit Transfer (P-EBT) in its final year of operation. This chart is based on data available as of December 2023 and appears in the USDA, Economic Research Service’s Food and Nutrition Assistance Landscape: Fiscal Year 2023 Annual Report, released June 2024.

Whole grain density increased in school foods after 2012

Monday, May 13, 2024

Since 2005, the Federal Dietary Guidelines for Americans have recommended that people eat at least half of their grain intake in the form of whole grains. The process of refining grains removes some portions that contain vitamins, minerals, and dietary fiber, while whole grains contain all parts of the grain kernel. Whole grains are measured in ounce equivalents, with one ounce equivalent representing roughly the same amount of grain as in a slice of bread or a half-cup of rice. The Federal recommendations based on a 2,000-calorie diet are 1.5 ounce equivalents of whole grains per 1,000 calories. In 1994–98, U.S. residents 2 years old and over averaged 0.4 ounce equivalents of whole grains per 1,000 calories, less than one-third the recommendation. Whole-grain intake remained essentially unchanged in 2017–18 at 0.43 ounce equivalents per 1,000 calories. From 1994 to 2018, food prepared at home was more whole-grain dense when compared with the broad category of food obtained from all outside sources (such as restaurants, fast food, and school). However, there were considerable differences between foods obtained at school and other sources of foods prepared away from home. These differences widened after 2012, when changes in the USDA nutrition standards for school meals and other foods sold at schools established whole-grain requirements. School foods include foods obtained from USDA school meals or other foods sold at school that are not brought from home, such as snacks. This chart appears in the Amber Waves article Children Were Only Age Group Improving Whole-Grain Intakes—School Foods Are a Key Factor, published in September 2023.

One quarter of the military population experienced food insecurity in 2018 and 2020

Thursday, May 2, 2024

In 2018 and 2020, 25.3 percent of the military population reported experiencing food insecurity, or low and very low food security, compared with 10.1 percent in the demographically equivalent civilian adult population. Food security—defined as access to enough food for an active, healthy life at all times—is associated with cognitive function, body mass index, and intentions to stay in the military. Further, 10.5 percent of the military population reported the more severe form of food insecurity, very low food security, in 2018 and 2020. During the same period, the civilian adult population reported very low food security of 3.6 percent. USDA, Economic Research Service (ERS) monitors the food security status of households in the United States through an annual nationwide survey, which provided the civilian adult data. Military data were drawn from the Status of Forces Survey of Active Duty Members. These findings indicate that the military population experiences elevated rates of food insecurity compared with the general population. This chart appears in the ERS report Comparing Food Insecurity Among the U.S. Military and Civilian Adult Populations, published in April 2024.

Infant formula market was more concentrated before WIC rebate contracts for formula

Tuesday, April 9, 2024

State agencies that administer USDA’s Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) use competitive, single-source contracts to reduce the cost of infant formula. These contracts provide significant discounts in the form of manufacturer rebates for each can of formula purchased through WIC. Infants who receive formula through WIC consume more than half of all infant formula in the United States. The manufacturer holding the WIC contract in a State sells the most infant formula in that State, including to consumers not participating in WIC. The infant formula market is highly concentrated. However, comparing market shares over time indicates that the market has become less concentrated. In 1987, the year of the first rebate contract and 2 years before Federal law required that WIC State agencies use cost containment systems, three manufacturers accounted for 99 percent of sales of infant formula in the United States. In 2022, three manufacturers accounted for 83 percent of sales of infant formula. In addition to WIC contracts with manufacturers, other factors influence infant formula market concentration, such as regulation of formula manufactured inside the United States and import restrictions on formula manufactured outside the United States. Entrances and exits of manufacturers and changes in their market shares over time suggest these factors impact firms differently. This chart appears in the USDA, Economic Research Service report The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC): Background, Trends, and Economic Issues, 2024 Edition, published in February 2024.

Food insecurity in U.S. households varies across race and ethnicity

Monday, April 8, 2024

From 2016 to 2021, 11.1 percent of U.S. households experienced food insecurity, meaning they had difficulty providing enough food for all their members because of a lack of resources. Over the same period, 4.3 percent of U.S. households experienced very low food security, a more severe form of food insecurity in which food intake is reduced and eating patterns are disrupted. The prevalence of food insecurity during 2016–21 varied by race and ethnicity. Households headed by a reference person who identified as American Indian and Alaska Native (23.3 percent); Multiracial, American Indian-White (21.7 percent); Black (21.0 percent); Multiracial, All Other Combinations (18.4 percent); Multiracial, Black-White (18.0 percent); Hispanic (16.9 percent); and Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (15.6 percent) had significantly higher rates of food insecurity than the all-household average. The prevalence of food insecurity for households headed by a White (8.0 percent) or an Asian (5.4 percent) reference person was significantly lower than the all-household average. The prevalence of very low food security followed a similar pattern and was statistically significantly different from the all-household prevalence for most race and ethnicity categories. It was not significantly different for Hawaiian and Pacific Islander households. Very low food security ranged from 1.6 percent for Asian households to 11.3 percent for Multiracial, American Indian-White households. Meaningful differences in food insecurity exist across and within racial ethnic groups. Related data are available in the USDA, Economic Research Service report Household Food Insecurity Across Race and Ethnicity in the United States, 2016–21, published in April 2024.

Chronic disease risk increased with U.S. household food insecurity

Thursday, April 4, 2024

From 2019–22, the predicted prevalence of five selected chronic diseases was 1.9 to 9.5 percentage points higher for adults in very low food-secure households than those in high food-secure households. Researchers at USDA, Economic Research Service (ERS) recently updated estimates of the relationship between food security status and chronic disease among working-age adults in U.S. households with incomes at or below 200 percent of the Federal poverty level. They looked at the prevalence of stroke, coronary heart disease, diabetes, arthritis, and hypertension across four levels of household food security, ranging from high food security (households that reported no problems with or anxiety about being able to consistently obtain adequate amounts of food) to very low food security (in which eating patterns of one or more household members were disrupted and food intake was reduced). Adults in households that were less food secure were more likely to have one or more chronic disease, and the likelihood increased as food insecurity worsened. The prior data from 2011–15 and the more recent data from 2019–22 demonstrate a close link between food security status and health. This chart updates information in the ERS report Food Insecurity, Chronic Disease, and Health Among Working Age Adults, published in July 2017.

Manufacturer rebates to States for infant formula reduced WIC spending by about 23 percent from 1989 to 2022

Monday, March 18, 2024

The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) serves to safeguard the health of low-income pregnant and postpartum women, infants, and children younger than 5 years who are at nutritional risk. State agencies responsible for implementing WIC use cost-containment strategies to reduce program costs. The greatest savings come from strategies used to contain the costs of providing infant formula through the program. Since 1989, most WIC State agencies have used competitive bidding to award contracts to a single manufacturer to serve as the formula of first choice for infant participants in their State. In return, manufacturers offer WIC State agencies rebates for each unit of formula sold through the program. From 1989 to 2022, savings to WIC from the rebates totaled $71.9 billion (in inflation-adjusted 2022 dollars), or 23 percent. Without the rebates, the Federal Government would have spent about $307.5 billion on the WIC program over that period. With the rebates, the Government spent $235.6 billion. This chart is drawn from the USDA, Economic Research Service report The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC): Background, Trends, and Economic Issues, 2024 Edition, published in February 2024.

USDA’s School Breakfast Program served about 63 billion meals from 1975 through 2022

Monday, March 4, 2024

The USDA’s School Breakfast Program (SBP) has served about 63 billion meals since it was permanently authorized as a Child Nutrition Program in 1975. Any student in a participating school can get breakfast through the program. Students can receive a free breakfast if their household’s income is at or below 130 percent of the Federal poverty line (FPL), a reduced-price breakfast if their household’s income is between 130 and 185 percent of the FPL, and a full-price breakfast if their household’s income is above 185 percent of the FPL. The number of breakfasts served increased each year from 1982 through fiscal year (FY) 2016, before plateauing at about 2.4 billion meals from FY 2017 through FY 2019. On average, 85 percent of breakfasts were served for free or at a reduced price each year during this period. The onset of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic in March 2020 interrupted school operations, including the provision of meals, and the number of breakfasts served through the SBP dropped to about 1.8 billion breakfasts in FY 2020. The decrease reflected the use of USDA pandemic waivers, which allowed schools to serve meals through the Summer Food Service Program. From the end of FY 2021 through FY 2022, schools transitioned to serving meals through the SBP’s Seamless Summer Option. In FY 2022, the SBP provided 2.5 billion breakfasts, similar to prepandemic years. The data for this chart are from the USDA, Economic Research Service’s School Breakfast Program topic page.

Breastfeeding in WIC program increased following infant formula market disruptions in 2022

Tuesday, February 20, 2024

The number of breastfed infants in USDA’s Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) began to increase around the start of infant formula supply chain disruptions in 2022. In February 2022, a voluntary recall of some powder infant formulas and a temporary closure of a formula manufacturing facility compounded Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic-related supply chain issues that limited the supply of infant formula. National monthly WIC participation data provide insights into how caregivers of WIC-participating infants responded to these challenges. In March 2022, the number of fully formula feeding infants decreased 5 percent, while the number of partially breastfed infants increased 4 percent and the number of fully breastfed infants increased 5 percent compared with the same month in the previous year. By October 2022, the number of fully formula feeding infants had decreased 8 percent, while the number of partially breastfed infants increased 15 percent and the number of fully breastfed infants increased 29 percent from one year before. The increases in the numbers of breastfed infants continued in fiscal year 2023, remaining above previous year numbers through September. This chart is drawn from the USDA, Economic Research Service report The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children: Background, Trends, and Economic Issues, 2024 Edition, published in February 2024.

Breastfeeding initiation increased among WIC participants and WIC-eligible nonparticipants across racial and ethnic groups from 2009–17

Tuesday, January 16, 2024

Breastfeeding is considered the best source of nutrition for infants and is therefore promoted by USDA’s Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC). Initiation, one breastfeeding metric, refers to breastfeeding an infant shortly after birth, including at or before discharge from the hospital. From 2009 to 2017, rates of breastfeeding initiation increased among low-income women regardless of WIC participation status or race/ethnicity. Hispanic women had the highest rates of breastfeeding initiation throughout the study period. Non-Hispanic Black women had the lowest rates of breastfeeding initiation, but they experienced the largest gains (22.3 percent among WIC participants and 24.1 percent among WIC-eligible nonparticipants). Compared with WIC-eligible nonparticipants (80.1 percent), WIC participants (78.5 percent) continued to have lower rates of breastfeeding initiation overall, although the gap in initiation between WIC-eligible nonparticipants and WIC participants closed for some racial/ethnic groups. In 2009, Asian/Pacific Islander women had the largest gap in breastfeeding initiation by WIC status. By 2017, this gap had narrowed and reversed direction because of a greater increase in breastfeeding initiation among WIC participants (21.4 percent) compared with WIC-eligible nonparticipants (8.6 percent). This pattern also was observed for American Indian/Alaska Native women and for non-Hispanic White women. This chart appears in the USDA, Economic Research Service’s Amber Waves article Rates of Breastfeeding Initiation Increased Among Low-Income Women, 2009–17; Racial and Ethnic Disparities Persist, released October 2023.