An estimated 7 million seniors were food insecure in 2022, according to Map the Meal Gap data released by Feeding America earlier in 2024. Senior Americans can face unique situations that make them more vulnerable to facing hunger, which can include underemployment, disability and caregiving.
Here’s what that issue looks like by the numbers.
1 in 11 seniors age 60 and older, or 8.7% of the senior population, were food insecure in 2022
The size of the senior population is approximately 79 million. Of that number, 8.7%, or 6.9 million people, experienced food insecurity in 2022. That unfortunate number is consistent with reports from the USDA about food insecurity rising in 2022.
1 in 8 adults age 50 to 59, or 11.9% of the older adult population, were food insecure in 2022
There are approximately 41 million adults age 50-59 in the U.S. Of that demographic, 11.9%, or 4.9 million, were food insecure in 2022.
Every state is home to seniors and older adults who experience food insecurity
In 2022, state-level food insecurity rates for seniors ranged from a high of 14.0% in Louisiana to a low of 3.0% in North Dakota. In Indiana, 8% of seniors were food insecure in 2022.
Many more seniors may be food insecure in the future.
Unfortunately, these statistics are not expected to improve.
By 2050, it is projected that the senior population will comprise around 104 million people who are age 60 and older. If the current rate of food insecurity among seniors does not change, this would equate to more than 9 million seniors experiencing food insecurity.
Multigenerational households are more than twice as likely to experience food insecurity
While this type of household structure can yield many positive benefits, seniors and older adults who have a grandchild in the household experience food insecurity at higher rates than those without a grandchild present. 
In 2022, food insecurity was 2.2 times as high for seniors living with a grandchild (18.1% vs. 8.3%) and more than twice as high for older adults living with a grandchild (25.6% vs. 11.3%).
In households with limited economic resources, Feeding America found adults often shielded children from food insecurity. Meaning, while the adults in the household were food insecure, the children were not.
That means seniors and older adults may be ensuring the food security of their grandchildren at the expense of their own needs and need additional support.
Disability is strongly associated with food insecurity among aging adults
Food insecurity has negative effects for individuals across the age spectrum. For seniors and older adults, these effects can be particularly problematic given the unique health, economic, mobility and nutritional challenges that can come with aging.
Having a disability was also strongly associated with food insecurity. Seniors with a disability had food insecurity rates over twice as high as seniors without disabilities (15.3% compared to 6.5%). For older adults, the disparity is even greater. Older adults with disabilities had food insecurity rates more than three times as high as older adults without disabilities (31.2% compared to 9.3%).
For more on this issue, check out Map the Meal Gap for an interactive map exploring food insecurity across the U.S.
