food insecurity

noun

plural food insecurities

: the fact or an instance of being unable to consistently access or afford adequate food

The USDA defines food insecurity as a household's inability to provide enough food for each person to live an active, healthy lifestyle. Food insecurity can also occur when there is an abundance of processed, pre-packaged, calorie-dense foods, because these foods do not contain adequate nutrition.

—The Northeast Mississippi (Tupelo) Daily Journal

The federal government often allocates funds to help citizens facing food insecurity and other socio-economic hardships …

—Yssis Cano-Santiago

This past year has laid bare concerns about food insecurities in this country. The pandemic has led to shortages in the grocery store on essential items like toilet paper and meat.

—Amanda Radke

Examples of food insecurity in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

One of the motivators of the work, Dennis said, was the realization that the issue of food insecurity was right in her backyard. —Lauren Costantino, Miami Herald, 22 Apr. 2024

Musically Fed, which redistributes surplus backstage and VIP meals to veterans and those facing homelessness and food insecurity in the United States, will once again partner with Live Nation-Hewitt Silva (LNHS) to handle surplus catering at forthcoming LNHS events at the Hollywood Bowl. —Chris Eggertsen, Billboard, 18 Apr. 2024

This is an increase from the 530,000 people who were predicted to experience this level of food insecurity in a previous IPC analysis, according to the report. —Mary Kekatos, ABC News, 18 Mar. 2024

Of the 10 states with the highest levels of children’s food insecurity, five rejected Summer EBT: Louisiana, Oklahoma, Mississippi, Alabama and Texas. —Jason Deparle, New York Times, 9 Apr. 2024

Days a week 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Cereals and tubers Oil Sugar Seeds, beans, legumes Vegetables Protein-rich foods Dairy products Fruits 4.4 2.13 1.71 1.7 0.52 0.38 0.3 0.06 Source: IPC acute food insecurity analysis. —Lauren Weber, Washington Post, 4 Apr. 2024

More than 210,000 of the people in the north, including Gaza City — where needs are at their most dire — already facing famine or catastrophic levels of food insecurity, the report said. —Nabih Bulos, Los Angeles Times, 30 Mar. 2024

The nonprofit also distributes 20,000 snacks for low-income children twice daily to combat food insecurity. —Alexis Waiss, The Arizona Republic, 17 Mar. 2024

According to a 2018 report by the L.A. County Department of Public Health, South Los Angeles was the area with the highest rate of food insecurity in the county. —Daniel Miller, Los Angeles Times, 29 Mar. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1950, in the meaning defined above