Roughly one out of every four post-9/11 veterans lives with food insecurity, more than twice that of non-veterans.
The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is fighting back against food insecurity through the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) Food Security Office. The establishment of the office was approved in March 2022. They are leading the effort to break the cycle of veteran food insecurity by working to establish sustainable access to food resources using evidence-based strategies to inform health-care delivery.
Food insecurity is different than physiological hunger. It is a lack of consistent access to enough food for an active, healthy life or a household in an economic and social condition where access to adequate food is limited or uncertain.
Nearly 12% of Americans — 38 million people — live in food insecure households. Among the veteran population in the United States, post-9/11 veterans and women veterans face the highest rates of food insecurity. Approximately 26% of post-9/11 veterans live with food insecurity and 28% of women veterans live in food insecure households.
Currently, there are multiple efforts to fight against food insecurity in veterans, but the efforts are uncoordinated and inefficient. To correct this, the Food Security Office will be built on three pillars:
• Partnerships
• Data Management
• Research/Education
Through this structure, VHA’s Food Security Office will align these efforts by providing support, expertise and advocacy.
To learn more about fighting against food insecurity in veterans, click here.
- Veterans Healthcare