ERS research in this area focuses on the economic, social, and demographic factors that affect the income and poverty status of rural residents and their participation in Federal assistance programs, including food assistance programs.
USDA’s domestic food assistance programs affect the daily lives of millions of people, with about one in five Americans participating in at least one food assistance program at some point during a given year.
"No one should go hungry in America. FNS provides children and low-income people access to food, a healthful diet, and nutrition education. We help nearly one in four people."
Provides a directory to credible, accurate, and practical resources for consumers, nutrition and health professionals, educators and government personnel. Visitors can find printable format educational materials, government reports, research papers and more.
ERS plays a leading role in Federal research on food security—access by all people at all times to enough food for an active, healthy life—in U.S. households and communities. Additional links from this page.
Sept. 14, 2011 — USDA Under Secretary Kevin Concannon today highlighted the results of two Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) pilot programs in Arkansas and Mississippi that used incentives to increase participation among low-income children.
Released September 7, 2011 - from this Summary, you can link to the full report [37 pp], which includes further links to Statistical Summary; Key stats and graphs
How many hungry people are there? How many of them are children?How many of them are also homeless?What national, state and local agencies are in place to help them? Is there any current legislation directed at hunger?
Items from Office of Research and Analysis, FNS Program Data, Nutrition Assistance Programs Keydata Releases, Nutrition Assistance Programs Performance Reports. Html, PDF and Excel formats.
Economic Research Report No. (ERR-83) 66 pp, November 2009. "Fifty-five percent of all food-insecure households participated in one or more of the three largest Federal food and nutrition assistance programs during the month prior to the 2008 survey."
Current Population Survey Food Security Supplement—Available from the Census Bureau on-line via the DataFerrett system: http://www.ers.usda.gov/data/FoodSecurity/CPS/
"Women Thrive Worldwide's latest report analyzes the role of women in food production worldwide and the unique barriers they face in accessing global markets. Amidst skyrocketing food prices, the report highlights the experiences of small-scale women farmers & makes policy recommendations as to how they can be better equipped to feed a growing world." 13 pages
Under TEFAP, commodity foods are made available to States. States provide the food to local agencies that they have selected, usually food banks, which in turn, distribute the food to soup kitchens and food pantries that directly serve the public.
A gateway to information related to the CACFP program including eligibility requirements, commonly asked questions, state contacts, regulations and more.
Formerly Food Stamp Program; provides a basic safety net to millions of people by providing monthly benefits to eligible low-income families which can be used to purchase food.
