Slightly more than 10% of U.S. households did not have consistent access to enough food for all members to lead an active and healthy life at some point in 2021, the latest data available, according to U.S. Department of Agriculture research.
This percentage of food-insecure households, equivalent to about 13.5 million households, has remained unchanged since 2019.
Of them, 5.1 million households did not have consistent eating patterns. In those households, one or more members were unable to eat or had to reduce food intake during the year because they did not have enough money or other resources for food, according to the USDA research.
Food insecurity can be a temporary situation for a family or last for a long time, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
