House Agriculture Committee Ranking Member David Scott released the below statement in reaction to the release of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Economic Research Service’s (ERS) report, Household Food Security in the United States in 2022.
“Today’s ERS report, Household Food Security in the United States in 2022, underlines the vital importance of protecting SNAP, our Nation’s most effective anti-hunger program. While House Republicans remain mired in disunity and dysfunction, House Democrats remain united in our years-long campaign to protect and defend Federal food assistance programs from unwarranted, immoral, and shortsighted attacks.
“This ERS report is the latest sign that the need for SNAP is as critical as ever. To grow our economy and protect our children, the elderly, and veterans from hunger, we must reject harmful attempts by extreme House Republicans to slash SNAP benefits.”
Report Takeways:
– Some 12.8 percent of U.S. households were food insecure in 2022, a jump from 10.2 percent the year before and the largest annual increase in USDA’s hunger measure since 2008.
– In 2022, 17 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 2022 was higher than in 2021 and 2020.
– From 2021 to 2022, food insecurity increased for nearly all subgroups of households, including those with children.
– Only about 55 percent of food-insecure households participated in one or more of the three largest Federal food assistance programs administered by USDA.
