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 | | Find information, background and supporting data, and resources on food security and hunger issues, including statistics, reports and online tools. |
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| Statistics |
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 | Food Stamp Program Map Machine
USDA. Economic Research Service.
Please note, this site must be viewed in either Internet Explorer or Netscape 7.0 or higher
Pick your region, your state and your county and this interactive Web based "Food Stamp Program Map Machine" will show program participation, benefit levels and changes from year to year. It also tabulates information for county, state or nation. Data is also available in tabular format from the Census Bureau and the Bureau of Economic Analysis to download for further analysis. December 2004 |
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| General Information |
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| Hunger in the U.S.
Food Research and Action Center.
Provides poverty and hunger information, statistics, and studies. |
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 | Safe Food for the Hungry
Purdue University. Cooperative Extension Service. Department of Foods and Nutrition.
Food safety and nutrition information designed to teach food assistance program staff and volunteers. |
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| Reports |
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| SNAP Participation Rates
USDA. FNS. Office of Analysis, Nutrition, and Evaluation.
Link to SNAP's research and program studies. Includes trends in SNAP and Food Stamp Program (FSP) participation rates from 1999. Updated annually. |
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| A Case Study of Eight Food Security Projects (PDF|4.83MB)
California Department of Health Services. Cancer Prevention and Nutrition Section. California Nutrition Network for Health, Active Families.
Report summarizes the activities and achievements of eight community food security and nutrition education projects in California. This report describes activities undertaken from 2000 to 2004. October 2005 |
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| Effects of Economic Conditions and Program Policy on State Food Stamp Program Caseloads, 2000 to 2006
USDA. Economic Research Service.
Study combines State panel data and qualitative interviews to examine the economic and policy factors associated with the sharp increase in the number of Food Stamp Program (FSP) participants between 2000 and 2006. This period is particularly interesting because the rise in participation between 2003 and 2006 occurred while the national economy was improving. August 2009 |
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| Food Assistance and Nutrition Programs: FANRP Research Findings
USDA. Economic Research Service.
The Food Assistance and Nutrition Research Program (FANRP) supports a broad spectrum of food and nutrition assistance research. ERS has compiled an electronic database of the hundreds of peer-reviewed reports and articles based on FANRP-supported research published at ERS and elsewhere. |
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 | Food Stamp Benefits Provide Fiscal Stimulus
USDA. Economic Research Service.
"In fiscal year 2007, USDA provided $30.4 billion in food stamp benefits to needy Americans. During a downturn, the program is an automatic fiscal stimulus, without congressional action, by providing benefits to new participants." April 2008 |
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| Food Stamp Program Access Study: Eligible Nonparticipants
USDA. Economic Research Service.
"This report was produced as part of the Food Stamp Program (FSP) Access Study, which is examining local food stamp office policies and practices as possible barriers to participation. The report focuses on one group of eligible households, those who are not participating in the FSP." May 2004 |
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 | Food Stamps and Obesity: What Do We Know?
USDA. Economic Research Service.
"Results from reviewed studies indicate that for most participants in the Food Stamp Program use of food stamp benefits does not result in an increase in either BMI or the likelihood of being overweight or obese. However, for nonelderly women, who account for 28 percent of the food stamp caseload, some evidence suggests that participation in the Food Stamp Program may increase BMI and the probability of obesity." March 2008 |
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| Frequency and Duration of Food Insecurity and Hunger in U.S. Households
USDA. Economic Research Service.
Provides information on a study that appears in the Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior, Vol 24, 2002. Describes it as the first nationally representative study of the extent to which food insecurity and hunger are frequent, recurring, or occasional in US households that experience them. The findings add credibility to food security statistics based on the US food security scale. September 2002 |
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| Hunger: Its Impact on Children's Health and Mental Health (PDF|57 KB)
USDA. Economic Research Service.
This study examines the independent contribution of child hunger to children's physical and mental health and academic functioning after controlling for a range of environmental, maternal, and child factors that also have been associated with poor outcomes among children. October 2002 |
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| Sources of Variation in State-Level Food Stamp Participation Rates
USDA. Economic Research Service.
"Using data for 2003 from the Food Stamp Program Quality Control and Current Population Survey, this study examined factors that help to explain the variation in the participation rate in the Food Stamp Program across States." March 2008 |
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| South Carolina Food Stamp and Well-Being Study: Well-Being Outcomes Among Food Stamp Leavers
USDA. Economic Research Service.
"This study examines data from a survey of families in South Carolina who left the Food Stamp Program (FSP) between 1998 and 2000. Study results show that families with rising incomes are less likely than families with lower incomes to experience food hardships or other adverse events or to have a negative view about life changes." September 2006 |
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 | State of the States 2007: A Profile of Food & Nutrition Programs across the Nation (PDF|3.39 MB)
Food Research Action Center.
The data in this report describe the extent of hunger and food insecurity and the use of nutrition programs for the United States as a whole and for each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia, giving a snapshot of how well or badly each state is doing in using available tools to meet the needs of hungry people and improve the health of low-income families. June 2007 |
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| The Costs of Benefit Delivery in the Food Stamp Program: Lessons From a Cross-Program Analysis
USDA. Economic Research Service.
"This study compares the Food Stamp Program (FSP) with eight other public assistance programs across four measures of program effectiveness—administrative costs, error payments, program access, and benefit targeting. Results show that the FSP and the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) present contrasting patterns. Low administrative costs also appear to be inversely associated with good program access for recipients. Also, programs that are more highly targeted tend to have higher benefit delivery costs." March 2008 |
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 | The Food Assistance Landscape: FY 2007 Annual Report
USDA. Economic Research Service.
"This report uses preliminary data from the Food and Nutrition Service to examine trends in the programs through fiscal 2007. It also discusses a series of recent ERS reports that compile evidence to help answer the question of whether the Food Stamp Program can do more to improve the food choices of participants." May 2008 |
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| What Factors Account for State-to-State Differences in Food Security?
USDA. Economic Research Service.
The prevalence of food security in a State depends not only on the characteristics of households in the State, such as their income, employment, and household structure, but also on State-level characteristics, such as average wages, cost of housing, levels of participation in food assistance programs, and tax policies. November 2006 |
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| Who Has Time To Cook? How Family Resources Influence Food Preparation
USDA. Economic Research Service.
This study finds that household time resources significantly affect how much time is allocated to preparing food. The results are relevant for the design of food assistance programs as well as for improving our understanding of how different family time resources affect consumption behavior. May 2007 |
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| Online Tools |
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 | Eat Right When Money's Tight
USDA. NAL. SNAP-Ed Connection.
A collection of resources provided to assist SNAP-Ed providers working with participants in an environment of rising food prices. |
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 | Food Recovery Photographs
USDA. Online Photography Center.
A collection of photographs showing volunteers working at a food bank. |
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 | Household Food Security in the United States, 2005
USDA. Economic Research Service.
This audio slideshow talks about some of the findings in the report, Household Food Security in the United States, 2005. The speaker is Mark Nord, a co-author of the report. (November 14, 2006)
(Requires Adobe Flash Player - 3 minutes 45 seconds) |
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| Hunger 101
Second Harvest Food Bank of Greater New Orleans and Acadiana.
Hunger 101 is a tool you can use to learn about hunger in southern Louisiana. In just a few minutes, you can get a taste of what it is like to struggle with poverty and hunger. Hunger 101 is a hands-on learning experience designed for groups of fifteen to forty people. |
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| The Thrifty Food Plan Calculator
Tufts University. Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy.
This calculator is a tool for learning about tradeoffs between the nutrition quality and costs of foods available in the United States. The challenge is to create a nutritious, affordable, and tasty food plan that meets your nutrition policy goals. |
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 | Together We Can! (PDF|187 KB)
USDA. Food and Nutrition Service.
A handbook that offers step-by-step plans for combating hunger. Outlines ideas for what volunteers can do, provides action plans for hunger-fighting activities, and identifies resources available to fight hunger in communities everywhere throughout America. |
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Last Modified: Nov 4, 2009 |
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