USDA report shows hunger persists as Congress narrows SNAP safety net

The USDA Economic Research Service released the delayed Household Food Security in the United States in 2024 report on Dec. 30, 2025, and found that 13.7 percent of Americans are unable to consistently feed their families and 5.4 percent regularly skip meals. Those figures arrive as federal policy has tightened: Congress this year expanded work requirements for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, a change expected to exclude nearly 4 million people from benefits.

The human scale of the statistics is stark: "On any given day, almost 48 million Americans, including nearly 14 million children, don't get enough to eat." Beyond that snapshot, more than 47 million Americans, 5 million of whom live in Texas, struggle to feed their families at various times throughout the year. Some 18 million households face very low food security, meaning they have skipped meals or entire days of eating.

The ERS report framed the national food insecurity rate as not statistically different from the prior two years, but the broader trend raises alarm: the analysis notes that 15 percent was the highest rate of food insecurity since 2021, with many years previously falling near 10 percent. By acknowledging that hunger rates have remained consistent for the past three years, advocates say the federal response is failing large numbers of people who now face longer stretches of deprivation.

Policy changes enacted this year expand the pool of Americans subject to SNAP work rules, removing exemptions that had protected people in vulnerable circumstances. The newly affected groups include foster youth aging out of the system, caretakers of teens and aging parents, people experiencing homelessness, veterans, and some seniors aged 55 to 65 who may be unable to find work. The consequence, according to agency and advocacy estimates, is a near-term increase in people without an entry point to the nutrition safety net.

Feeding America, the national hunger-relief network, has sounded the alarm; Claire Babineaux-Fontenot, the outgoing CEO of Feeding America, offers what one summary called a "reality check about hunger in these United States." Food insecurity at the scale documented by ERS has predictable public health consequences: children face developmental and educational setbacks, adults are more likely to have unmanaged chronic illnesses, and hospitals and community clinics absorb downstream costs when nutrition-related conditions worsen.

The combination of persistent need and a narrowed safety net also deepens long-standing racial and geographic disparities in health. States with large low-income populations and limited access to affordable housing and health care will feel concentrated effects, and rural communities with fewer social services may see food banks and health clinics overwhelmed. For Texas, where five million people are counted among those who struggle, the strain will be both logistical and economic.

The ERS report and recent policy shifts present a narrow set of choices for policymakers: bolster assistance and broaden access to proven nutrition programs, or accept higher levels of unmet need that will translate into worse health, higher medical costs, and deeper inequality. The continued scale of hunger in America makes clear that current interventions have not ended the crisis; without reversal or expansion of the safety net, millions more households will face preventable hardship with long-term public health consequences.