US blocks food security report as millions struggle to eat

A USDA spokesperson said in a statement on Wednesday that the final 2024 food security report—originally scheduled for release on Thursday—along with all related data publications, has been put on hold.

Joseph Llobrera of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities told the Associated Press that halting the report will make it harder to measure hunger levels in the U.S., especially as federal food assistance programs face steep cuts and tariffs and immigration restrictions drive up food prices.

“If the USDA actually read its own reports, they’d see they’re anything but political,” Llobrera said.

The Food Security Report has long been one of the few official, credible sources on hunger and food access among American households. Its suspension, particularly amid budget cuts to nutrition assistance programs, effectively silences an alarm that could alert policymakers, media, and the public to a deepening crisis. The move is likely to reduce transparency and hinder public oversight of the government’s handling of poverty and food insecurity.

With rising food prices fueled by inflation, tariffs, and labor shortages, and as assistance programs face funding reductions, the elimination of this report effectively blinds the government to the harsh realities many Americans face.

Without annual data, it will be far more difficult to design effective anti-hunger initiatives or to support vulnerable communities. Nonprofits and charities will also lose a key tool for assessing social needs and targeting aid where it’s most urgently required.