USDA Discontinues Annual Food Insecurity Survey Amidst Controversy
In a move stirring debate, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has decided to terminate its long-standing Household Food Security Report. The decision, announced Saturday, labels the survey as “redundant, costly, politicized, and extraneous” according to a USDA statement.
For decades, the Household Food Security Report has been an essential tool for assessing food insecurity among low-income families and shaping policies to combat hunger across America. The discontinuation comes shortly after a legislative change, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which increases work requirements for the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and potentially leaves 2.4 million Americans without food benefits.
Crystal FitzSimons, president of the Food Research and Action Center (FRAC), emphasized the report’s significance. “The national food insecurity survey is a critical, reliable data source that shows how many families in America struggle to put food on the table,” FitzSimons explained to NPR, underscoring the report’s role in informing policy and advocacy efforts.
The USDA’s announcement has been met with skepticism. Data from 2023 indicated that 47.4 million people lived in food-insecure households, with nearly 14 million of them being children. Despite USDA claims that food insecurity rates have remained stable, experts like Kyle Ross from the Center for American Progress challenge this notion, citing an increase in food insecurity during 2023, the highest since 2014.
“Last year’s report for 2023 showed an increase in food insecurity,” Ross stated, contradicting USDA’s position. The report also highlighted a 3.2% rise in food-insecure children as noted by FRAC.
Ross further criticized the USDA’s claims of politicization in the report, calling them baseless. He suggested that the policy changes leading to increased food insecurity might have influenced the decision to end the report.
Originally established during the Clinton administration, the Household Food Security Report has provided valuable insights into food insecurity trends across various administrations. The final report, covering data from 2024, is set to be released on October 22, as reported by The Associated Press.
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