Hunger in Idaho
220,990
Food Insecure People in Idaho
11.4%
Food Insecurity Rate
67,590
Food Insecure Children in Idaho
14.5%
Child Food Insecurity Rate
Map the Meal Gap in Idaho
Since 2011, Feeding America has conducted an annual Map the Meal Gap study to improve our understanding of food insecurity and food costs at the local level.
Food Insecurity in Idaho
Feeding America, the nation’s largest hunger-relief organization, released its annual Map the Meal Gap report in May 2024. The report is a county-by-county analysis of food insecurity in the United States in 2022.
According to Map the Meal Gap 220,990 Idahoans experienced food insecurity in 2022. This includes 67,590 children in Idaho experienced food insecurity in 2022. This means that 1 in 9 Idahoans and 1 in 7 Idaho children experienced food insecurity.
Food insecurity is when there is limited or uncertain access to adequate food to meet one’s basic needs. Food insecurity varies greatly across the state, but it is often persistently higher in rural area. Statewide,11.4% of Idahoans are food insecure. The highest rates of food insecurity in Idaho are in Shoshone County (16.5%), Lewis County (16.4%), Butte County (16.4%), and Washington County (15.5%).
Statewide, 14.5% of Idaho children are food insecure. The Idaho counties with the highest rates of food insecurity among children are Lewis County (24.5%), Shoshone County (23.1%), Butte County (22.7%), and Custer County (21.4%).
Twenty-one percent of people who are Hispanic in Idaho were food insecure in 2022.
Map The Meal Gap
-
National
Food Insecure Overall
44,151,000 people in the United States experienced food insecurity. That is 13.5% of the population.
Food Insecure Kids
13,394,000 children in the United States experienced food insecurity. That is 18.5% of children in the United States.
-
Idaho
Food Insecure Overall
220,990 Idahoans experienced food insecurity in 2022. This is 11.4% of Idahoans.
Food Insecure Kids
67,590 children experienced food insecurity in 2022. This is 14.5% of Idaho’s children.
-
North & North Central Idaho
Food Insecure Overall
45,230 people in North & North Central Idaho experienced food insecurity in 2022. This is 13.8% of the population in the region.
Food Insecure Kids
12,700 children in North & North Central Idaho experienced food insecurity in 2022. This is 18.9% of children in the region.
*2022 Data (10 Counties)
-
Southwest Idaho
Food Insecure Overall
114,780 people in Southwest Idaho experienced food insecurity in 2022. This is 12.1% of the population in the region.
Food Insecure Kids
35,640 children in Southwest Idaho experienced food insecurity in 2022. This is 16.2% of children in the region.
*2022 Data (18 Counties)
-
Eastern Idaho
Food Insecure Overall
48,730 people in Eastern Idaho experienced food insecurity in 2022. This is 11.7% of the population in the region.
Food Insecure Kids
16,380 children in Eastern Idaho experienced food insecurity in 2022. This is 15% of children in the region.
*2022 Data (16 Counties)