Map the Meal Gap 2016

Released today, Map the Meal Gap 2016 finds that 423,130 people, including 151,440 children, in San Diego County experience food insecurity, or the equivalent of 13.3 percent of San Diegans. The study results reveal that San Diego County ranks in the top seven metro areas with the highest number of children living in food insecure households.

Map the Meal Gap is an annual study commissioned by Feeding America which uses data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, U.S. Census Bureau, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and food price data and analysis provided by Nielsen (NYSE: NLSN), a global provider of information and insights, to present a detailed analysis of the nation’s food insecurity.

Food insecurity is the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s measure of lack of access, at times, to enough food for an active, healthy life for all household members. Using county data from the five-year period of 2010 to 2014, Map the Meal Gap 2016 is the first Map the Meal Gap report with post-Great Recession county food-insecurity estimates.

Down less than one percent from last year, San Diego’s food insecurity rate falls just below the aggregate state rate of 13.9 percent and national rate of 14.7 percent. The annual meal gap in San Diego remains high, with more than 75 million meals required to meet the need and an additional 5.1 million needed in Imperial County.

Visit Feeding America’s website to view the Map the Meal Gap 2016 interactive map and learn more about hunger in your area.