ERS Charts of Note
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Tuesday, January 28, 2014
Most U.S. households with children are food secure, meaning they have consistent, dependable access to adequate food for active, healthy living for all household members. However in 2012, 20 percent of U.S. households with children were food insecure at times during the year. In about half of those households, only adults were food insecure, but in 10 percent of households with children, one or more of the children were also food insecure at some time during the year. Food insecurity among children is strongly associated with the educational attainment of adults in the household. For households headed by an adult with less than a high school diploma, the prevalence of food insecurity among children was more than six times as high in 2010-11 as for households headed by an adult with at least a 4-year college degree. This chart appears in Food Insecurity in Households With Children: Prevalence, Severity, and Household Characteristics, 2010-11, May 2013.
_450px.png?v=5466.2 "Which American households struggle to put food on the table?")
Thursday, January 2, 2014
While most U.S. households are food secure, a minority experience food insecurity at times during the year, meaning that their access to adequate food for active, healthy living is limited by a lack of money and other resources. Some experience very low food security, a more severe range of food insecurity where food intake of one or more members is reduced and normal eating patterns are disrupted. In 2012, about 41 percent of U.S. households with incomes below the Federal poverty line were food insecure. Rates of food insecurity and very low food insecurity were substantially higher than the national average for single-parent households, and for Black and Hispanic households. Food insecurity was more common in large cities and rural areas than in suburban areas. This chart appears in ERS’s data product, Ag and Food Statistics: Charting the Essentials.
Thursday, December 26, 2013
Knowing how often and how long households are food insecure is important for understanding the extent and character of food insecurity and for maximizing the effectiveness of programs aimed at alleviating it. Food-insecure households are those that are unable, at times during the year, to acquire adequate food because they lack sufficient money and other resources. Two studies commissioned by ERS found spells of food insecurity to be generally of short duration. For example, one study found that half of households that were food insecure at some time during the 5-year study period experienced the condition in just a single year and only 6 percent were food insecure in all 5 years. However, the fact that households move in and out of food insecurity also means that a considerably larger number of households are exposed to food insecurity at some time over a period of several years than are food insecure in any single year. The statistics for this chart are from “Food Insecurity in U.S. Households Rarely Persists Over Many Years” in the June 2013 issue of ERS’s Amber Waves magazine. Originally published on Monday, June 17, 2013.
_450px.png?v=5466.2 "Editor's Pick 2013:<br>How long do food-insecure households remain food insecure?")
Thursday, December 26, 2013
Knowing how often and how long households are food insecure is important for understanding the extent and character of food insecurity and for maximizing the effectiveness of programs aimed at alleviating it. Food-insecure households are those that are unable, at times during the year, to acquire adequate food because they lack sufficient money and other resources. Two studies commissioned by ERS found spells of food insecurity to be generally of short duration. For example, one study found that half of households that were food insecure at some time during the 5-year study period experienced the condition in just a single year and only 6 percent were food insecure in all 5 years. However, the fact that households move in and out of food insecurity also means that a considerably larger number of households are exposed to food insecurity at some time over a period of several years than are food insecure in any single year. The statistics for this chart are from “Food Insecurity in U.S. Households Rarely Persists Over Many Years” in the June 2013 issue of ERS’s Amber Waves magazine. Originally published on Monday, June 17, 2013.
Friday, November 29, 2013
Household food security statistics published annually by ERS are based on responses to survey questions about conditions and behaviors that characterize households when they are having difficulty meeting basic food needs. In households classified as having “very low food security,” the food intake of household members was reduced and their normal eating patterns were disrupted at times during the year because the household lacked money and other resources for food. In 2012, the 7 million households with very low food security reported the following specific conditions (along with other conditions): 96 percent reported that they had cut the size of meals or skipped meals because there was not enough money for food, 95 percent reported that they had eaten less than they felt they should because there was not enough money for food, and 68 percent reported that they had been hungry but did not eat because they could not afford enough food. This chart is drawn from a chart that appears in Household Food Security in the United States in 2012, ERR-155.
Friday, September 27, 2013
Households having trouble putting adequate food on the table may rely on emergency food providers. About 5 percent of U.S. households acquired emergency food from a food pantry in 2012, and less than 1 percent obtained meals from emergency kitchens. Food-insecure households were more likely to use these assistance options. Food-insecure households are households that were, at times, unable to acquire adequate food for one or more household members because they had insufficient money and other resources for food. One-quarter of food-insecure households used food pantries and 3.1 percent used emergency kitchens. An estimated 36 percent of households with very low food security visited food pantries and 5.7 percent visited emergency kitchens. Households with very low food security are those that were food insecure to the extent that eating patterns of one or more household members were disrupted and their food intake reduced at some point during the year. The statistics for this chart are from the Statistical Supplement to Household Food Security in the United States in 2012, AP-061, released on September 4, 2013.
Thursday, September 5, 2013
In 2012, 85.5 percent of U.S. households were food secure throughout the year. The remaining 14.5 percent (17.6 million households) were food insecure. Food-insecure households had difficulty at some time during the year providing enough food for all their members due to a lack of resources. After rising from 11.1 percent in 2007, the prevalence of food insecurity has been essentially unchanged since 2008. In 2012, 5.7 percent of U.S. households (7.0 million households) had very low food security. In this more severe range of food insecurity, the food intake of some household members was reduced and normal eating patterns were disrupted at times during the year due to limited resources. This chart appears in Household Food Security in the United States in 2012, ERR-155, released September 4, 2013.
Thursday, August 29, 2013
Between 2007 and 2011, the percentage of U.S. households with food-insecure children increased from 8.3 to 10.0 percent. Households with food-insecure children are those in which one or more children lack consistent access to adequate food because the household has insufficient money and other resources for food. Among these households, those with unemployed adults and part-time workers comprised a larger portion of the total after the recession than before the recession. In 2006-07, 6.9 percent of households with food-insecure children had an adult who was unemployed and looking for work and no adults employed. By 2010-11, that share had increased to 12.2 percent. In 2006-07, 10.4 percent of households with food-insecure children had an adult working part-time but none employed full-time—a share that grew to 15.4 percent by 2010-11. In both periods, the majority of households with food-insecure children included an adult working full-time. However, that percentage declined from 67.2 percent in 2006-07 to 59.6 percent in 2010-11. This chart is from “Post-Recession, a Greater Share of Food-Insecure Children Have Parents Who Are Unemployed or Working Part-Time” in ERS’s August 2013 Amber Waves magazine.
Friday, August 16, 2013
In 2009, as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), Congress temporarily increased the maximum benefit levels of USDA’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) by 13.6 percent, with the intention that, over time, rising food prices would eliminate the ARRA increase. By 2011, inflation had cut the value of the ARRA increase by about half and the percentage of SNAP-recipient households with very low food security had increased to 13.8 percent from 12.1 percent in 2009. Very low food security is characterized by reduced food intake and disrupted eating patterns. Low-income non-SNAP households did not experience worsening food security during this time. ERS analyses of the pre- and post-ARRA periods suggest that future increases in the maximum SNAP benefit of 10 percent would reduce the number of SNAP households with very low food security by about 22 percent, and reducing the maximum benefit by 10 percent would increase that number by about 29 percent. This chart appears in Effects of the Decline in the Real Value of SNAP Benefits from 2009 to 2011, ERR-151, August 2013.
Wednesday, July 24, 2013
As the 2007-09 Great Recession and its accompanying higher unemployment took its toll on U.S. families, food insecurity at the national level increased. In 2011, 14.9 percent of U.S. households were food insecure—up from 10.7 percent in 2001. Food-insecure households are those that were, at times, unable to acquire adequate food for one or more household members due to insufficient money or other resources for food. States differed both in the percentage of households that were food insecure and in the change in that prevalence rate during the period. From 2001 to 2011, the prevalence of food insecurity was essentially unchanged in 9 States and grew for the remaining 41 States and Washington, DC. This chart appears in “Food Insecurity Increased in Most States From 2001 to 2011” in the July 2013 issue of ERS’s Amber Waves magazine.
Wednesday, June 26, 2013
One in five U.S. households with children were food insecure in 2010-11. These households were, at times, unable to acquire adequate food for one or more members due to insufficient money and other resources for food. In about half of these households, only adults experienced food insecurity, while in 10 percent of all households with children, one or more of the children also were food insecure at some time during the year. Most parents attempt to shield their children from the more severe effects of food insecurity, even though they may have to reduce their own food intake to do so. The food security survey does not collect food insecurity information on each child in the household, but examining the prevalence of food insecurity among children by the age of the oldest child in the household sheds light on the greater protection afforded to younger children. Food insecurity among children was almost twice as prevalent in households with teenagers as in households in which the oldest child was no older than age 4. This chart appears in Food Insecurity in Households with Children: Prevalence, Severity and Household Characteristics, 2010-11, EIB-113, released May 30, 2013.
Monday, June 17, 2013
Knowing how often and how long households are food insecure is important for understanding the extent and character of food insecurity and for maximizing the effectiveness of programs aimed at alleviating it. Food-insecure households are those that are unable, at times during the year, to acquire adequate food because they lack sufficient money and other resources. Two studies commissioned by ERS found spells of food insecurity to be generally of short duration. For example, one study found that half of households that were food insecure at some time during the 5-year study period experienced the condition in just a single year and only 6 percent were food insecure in all 5 years. However, the fact that households move in and out of food insecurity also means that a considerably larger number of households are exposed to food insecurity at some time over a period of several years than are food insecure in any single year. The statistics for this chart are from “Food Insecurity in U.S. Households Rarely Persists Over Many Years” in the June 2013 issue of ERS’s Amber Waves magazine.
Monday, June 10, 2013
Food-insecure households are those that are unable at times during the year to acquire adequate food because they lack sufficient money and other resources. Food security is especially important for children because their diet quality affects not only their current health, but also their development and future well-being. Food-insecurity rates for households with children can differ across States due the characteristics of their populations and to State-level economic conditions. The prevalence of food insecurity in households with children ranged from a low of almost 11 percent in New Hampshire to a high of about 24 percent in Texas. (Data from nine national surveys conducted in December of each year in 2003-11 were combined to provide reliable State-level estimates.) The prevalence of food insecurity in households with children was below the national average (18.3 percent) in 19 States, above the national average in 14 States and the District of Columbia, and near the national average in 17 States. This chart appears in Food Insecurity in Households with Children: Prevalence, Severity, and Household Characteristics, 2010-11, EIB-113, released May 30, 2013.
Friday, May 17, 2013
Disability has emerged as one of the strongest known factors that affect household food insecurity. Food-insecure households are those that lack consistent access to adequate food for one or more household members. Because they face higher expenses for health care and adaptive equipment, households affected by disabilities require higher incomes to meet their basic needs than do households without members with disabilities. Even households that have incomes greater than three times the poverty level have a relatively high likelihood of being food insecure if they include an adult with a disability. In 2009-10, an estimated 13 percent of households that included a working-age adult not in the labor force due to a disability, and had incomes at least three times the Federal poverty line ($22,113 for a family of four), were food insecure. About 9 percent of households in that income range with an adult with a non-work-preventing disability were food insecure. In comparison, about 4 percent of households in that income range with no working-age adults with disabilities were food insecure. This chart appears in the May 2013 Amber Waves feature article, “Disability Is an Important Risk Factor for Food Insecurity.”
Monday, February 4, 2013
For the first time, a study has documented the substantial overlap between very low food security and disability. Very low food security is a severe range of food insecurity characterized by reductions in food intake and disrupted eating patterns for one or more household members. In 2009/10, one-quarter of U.S. households with very low food security included a working age adult (age 18-64) who was unable to work due to disability. Twelve percent of very-low-food-secure households included a working-age adult with other reported disabilities (disabilities that did not prevent employment). Altogether, close to two in five households with very low food security included a working-age adult with a disability. This chart is from Food Insecurity Among Households with Working-Age Adults with Disabilities, ERR-144, January 2013.
Friday, January 11, 2013
A new ERS study identifies disability as an important determinant of food insecurity. In 2009/10, about one in three U.S. households with an adult who was unable to work due to a disability were food insecure. Food-insecure households are those that lack consistent access to adequate food for one or more household members. Households that included adults with disabilities that did not prevent employment also had a relatively high prevalence of food insecurity; one-quarter of these households were food insecure. Twelve percent of households with no working-age adults with disabilities were food insecure. Reduced employment among persons with disabilities and high medical and other expenses associated with disabilities place these households at higher risk for food insecurity. This chart is from Food Insecurity Among Households with Working-Age Adults with Disabilities, ERR-144, released January 10, 2013.
Monday, September 24, 2012
In 2011, 14.9 percent of all U.S. households were food insecure, meaning that they had difficulty at some time during the year providing enough food for all their members due to lack of resources. About 41 percent of households with incomes below the Federal poverty line were food insecure. Rates of food insecurity were substantially higher than the national average for single-parent households, as well as Black and Hispanic households. Food insecurity was more common in large cities and rural areas than in suburban areas and other outlying areas around large cities. Rates of very low food security--a more severe form of food insecurity--were higher for these demographic groups as well. The statistics for this chart are from Household Food Security in the United States in 2011, ERR-141, released on September 5, 2012.
Wednesday, September 12, 2012
ERS monitors the extent and severity of food insecurity in all U.S. households and in U.S. households with children under age 18. In 2011, 14.9 percent of all U.S. households and 20.6 percent of households with children were food insecure, meaning they had difficulty at some time during the year providing enough food for all their members due to lack of resources. In about half of those food-insecure households with children, only the adults experienced food insecurity. In the other half, both children and adults were food insecure sometime during the year. In 1 percent of U.S. households with children (374,000 households) both children and adults experienced instances of very low food security, where food intakes were reduced and eating patterns were disrupted. This chart is from Household Food Security in the United States in 2011, ERR-141, released on September 5, 2012.
Thursday, September 6, 2012
In 2011, 85.1 percent of U.S. households were food secure throughout the year, meaning that they had dependable access to enough food for active healthy living. The remaining 14.9 percent of households were food insecure at least some time during the year, including 5.7 percent (6.8 million households) that had very low food security. In households experiencing very low food security, food intake of one or more members was reduced and normal eating patterns were disrupted. In 2011, the prevalence of very low food security returned to the level observed in 2008 and 2009, up from 5.4 percent in 2010. This chart is from Household Food Security in the United States in 2011, ERR-141, released on September 5, 2012.
Wednesday, June 27, 2012
In 2010, 14.5 percent of U.S. households were food insecure or had difficulty putting enough food on the table. Food insecurity rates were higher for households with members in nonstandard work arrangements-multiple jobs, part-time work, or varied work hours-than for households with members in full-time jobs. For example, 11.5 percent of households with one or more members engaged in full-time work were food insecure in 2010, while 28 percent of households with a member engaged in part-time work (and no full-time work) were food insecure. An ERS study found that among households with otherwise similar characteristics, including income, those with members in nonstandard work arrangements were more likely to be food insecure than those with members in full-time jobs. This chart appeared in "Food Insecurity More Common for Households With Nonstandard Work Arrangements" in the June 2012 issue of ERS's Amber Waves magazine.