How to Help Veterans Struggling with Hunger

Food insecurity among U.S. veterans and military families is a longtime blind spot for policymakers, but new studies are shedding light on the challenge.

What do we know about food insecurity among U.S. veterans and military families?

Analyses of food insecurity among U.S. veterans paint a mixed picture. Some studies show lower rates of food insecurity among veterans than the general population. For example, one study of more than 25,000 veterans enrolled in the National Health Interview Survey found that 6.5 percent were food insecure during 2011-2017, far lower than the food insecurity rate among the general population, which hovered between about 12 and 15 percent in the same period. Another study of 2005-2013 data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Current Population Survey – Food Security Supplement found much lower rates of food insecurity (8.4 percent) and very low food security (3.3 percent) among veteran households than in non-veteran households (14.4 percent and 5.4 percent, respectively). However, other studies show higher rates of food insecurity among veterans. In one study of over 6,700 veterans enrolled in the Veterans Aging Cohort Study, 24 percent reported food insecurity between 2002-2008.

Causes

The need is caused by various factors:

• Low pay. pay can start as low as $18,000 that’s just above the average for fast-food workers, which is about $18,880 a year, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics

• Unemployment or underemployment of military spouses many times unable to hold down jobs with base transfers and deployments

• Military members are often stationed in areas that have a very high cost of living, such as Southern California, Washington, D.C., the Eastern Seaboard, and Hawaii.

• Financial literacy especially for young people who entered the military right out of high school have never had to manage a budget

How You Can Help!

• Volunteer at Your Local Food Bank.

• Learn More About Veterans and Hunger.

• Provide Veterans With Resources For Soup Kitchens and Food Banks

• Volunteer at Your Local Food Bank.