{"id":26026,"date":"2025-12-09T06:30:00","date_gmt":"2025-12-09T14:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/?p=26026"},"modified":"2026-03-04T16:51:12","modified_gmt":"2026-03-05T00:51:12","slug":"food-insecurity-still-high-in-la-county-but-who-it-affects-is-changing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/food-insecurity-still-high-in-la-county-but-who-it-affects-is-changing\/","title":{"rendered":"Food insecurity remains high in L.A. County, but who it affects is changing"},"content":{"rendered":"\n\n\n    \n                                          \n\n  \n    \n\n\n\n\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"cc--component-container cc--article-hero \"\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  >\n  <div class=\"c--component c--article-hero\"\n    \n      >\n\n    \n<div class=\"inner-wrapper\">\n          \n<div class=\"f--field f--image\">\n\n    \n    \n    \n    \n    \n    \n              \n      <img\n                            data-src=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2025\/12\/px-food-insecurity-top-768x432.jpg\"\n          data-srcset=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2025\/12\/px-food-insecurity-top-1920x1080.jpg 1920w,https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2025\/12\/px-food-insecurity-top-1280x720.jpg 1280w,https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2025\/12\/px-food-insecurity-top-768x432.jpg 768w\"          data-sizes=\"(min-width:1200px) 75vw, (min-width:768px) 83vw, 100vw\"          class=\"lazyload\"\n        \n                  alt=\"A plate of healthy food that is empty on one quarter\"\n        \n        \n                                      \/>\n\n    \n    \n  \n  \n\n<\/div>\n  \n      <div class=\"image-caption\">\n          \n<div class=\"f--field f--description\">\n\n    \n  A quarter of Angelenos still have difficulty obtaining enough food, as some are finding it easier this year while others struggle more. (Composite: Letty Avila. Image source: iStock.)\n\n\n<\/div>\n    <\/div>\n  \n  <div class=\"text-wrapper\">\n          <nav aria-label=\"Breadcrumb\" class=\"breadcrumbs\">\n        <ul>\n                      <li><a href=\"\/news\/stories\/\">News<\/a><\/li>\n                      <li><a href=\"\/news\/stories\/\/?category=health\">Health<\/a><\/li>\n                  <\/ul>\n      <\/nav>\n    \n              \n<div class=\"f--field f--page-title\">\n\n    \n  <h1>Food insecurity remains high in L.A. County, but who it affects is changing<\/h1>\n\n\n<\/div>\n    \n          <div class=\"subtitle\">\n            \n<div class=\"f--field f--description\">\n\n    \n  USC Dornsife study finds that food insecurity held steady at 24% in 2025, with improvements for low-income households and rising strain among others.\n\n\n<\/div>\n      <\/div>\n    \n           <strong class=\"author-field\"><span >By<\/span><a href=\"mailto:communication@dornsife.usc.edu\">Jim Key<\/a><\/strong>\n    \n          <span class=\"post-date-field\">December 9, 2025<\/span>\n      <\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n  <\/div><\/div>\n\n  \n    \n\n\n\n\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"cc--component-container cc--social-share \"\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  >\n  <div class=\"c--component c--social-share\"\n    \n      >\n\n    \n  <div class=\"content-wrapper\">\n    <span class=\"a2a_kit a2a_kit_size_32 addtoany_list\" style=\"line-height: 32px;\">\n      <span class=\"title\">\n        Share\n      <\/span>\n                        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class=\"a2a_label visually-hidden\">Email<\/span>\n          <\/a>\n                  <\/span>\n  <\/div>\n\n  <\/div><\/div>\n \n\n\n        \n  \n    \n\n\n\n\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"cc--component-container cc--article-highlights \"\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  >\n  <div class=\"c--component c--article-highlights\"\n    \n      >\n\n    \n<div class=\"inner-wrapper\">\n          \n<div class=\"f--field f--section-title\">\n\n    \n  <h2>\n          Key findings:\n      <\/h2>\n\n\n<\/div>\n    \n      <ul>\n              <li><p>One in four L.A. County households experienced food insecurity in 2025 \u2014 consistent with last year.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n              <li><p>Among low-income households, food insecurity declined from 41% to 35%, though rates remain above pre-pandemic levels.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n              <li><p>A growing share of food-insecure Angelenos are higher-income residents.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n              <li><p>Nutrition insecurity fell sharply across the county, dropping from 29% to 21%.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n          <\/ul>\n  <\/div>\n  \n\n  <\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n\n  \n    \n\n\n\n\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"cc--component-container cc--rich-text \"\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  >\n  <div class=\"c--component c--rich-text\"\n    \n      >\n\n    \n      \n<div class=\"f--field f--wysiwyg\">\n\n    \n  <p>Food insecurity continues to affect a significant share of Los Angeles County residents, with one in four households (24%) reporting difficulty affording enough food in 2025, according to a <a href=\"https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/project\/feeding-la\/october-2025-food-nutrition-insecurity-in-los-angeles-county\/\">study<\/a> from the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences. This rate is essentially unchanged from 2024, underscoring the persistent challenges many Angelenos face amid high living costs, ongoing recovery from January\u2019s wildfires, and shifting federal food assistance policies.<\/p>\n<p>Despite the overall stability, the study \u2014 spearheaded by <a href=\"https:\/\/public-exchange.org\/usc\/project\/feeding-la\/\">USC Dornsife Public Exchange<\/a> \u2014 reveals a more complex picture below the surface. Low-income households saw notable improvements, while others continued to struggle as affordability pressures mounted.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThese findings show both encouraging progress and emerging pressures,\u201d said <a href=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/cesr\/profile\/kayla-de-la-haye\/\">Kayla de la Haye<\/a>, the study\u2019s lead author and director of the <a href=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/cesr\/fsi\/\">Food Systems Institute<\/a> at USC Dornsife\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/cesr\/\">Center for Economic and Social Research<\/a>. \u201cEven as food insecurity decreases among low-income households, the burden is shifting. Many Angelenos outside the safety net are struggling to keep up with rising costs.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2>Progress for low-income households reflects recent investments<\/h2>\n<p>The decline in food insecurity among low-income residents marks the second consecutive year of improvement. Researchers note that recent countywide investments \u2014 including more than $20 million in Food Equity Fund grants to more than 80 organizations and the establishment of the L.A. County Office of Food Systems \u2014 may be contributing to greater access to affordable, nutritious food.<\/p>\n<p>Nutrition insecurity \u2014 the lack of consistent access to healthy, safe and culturally appropriate foods \u2014 also improved substantially. Rates fell from 29% in 2024 to 21% in 2025, suggesting notable gains in residents\u2019 access to healthy foods, even as prices remain high.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThese positive shifts likely reflect the collective impact of local initiatives,\u201d de la Haye said. \u201cBut they also show the importance of sustained investment, especially as federal food assistance cuts begin rolling out next year.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2>A shift in who struggles to afford food<\/h2>\n<p>As food insecurity among low-income residents declined, higher-income households now make up a larger percentage of Angelenos experiencing food insecurity \u2014 a change researchers attribute to the region\u2019s steep cost of living. Low-income residents remain the most affected overall, but higher-income Angelenos now represent a larger share than in previous years.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThese are families who often don\u2019t qualify for safety net programs like CalFresh,\u201d de la Haye said. \u201cThey\u2019re earning above eligibility thresholds but still struggling to meet the cost of living in L.A.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2>CalFresh remains essential \u2014 but insufficient for many households<\/h2>\n<p>CalFresh, California\u2019s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, is the state\u2019s largest tool for reducing food insecurity, providing grocery benefits to more than 1 million L.A. County residents each month. But many recipients still struggle to afford enough food.<\/p>\n<p>In October 2025, 44% of CalFresh participants in L.A. County were food insecure, indicating that current benefit levels are not always adequate to meet rising food and living costs. Researchers note that this is especially concerning as federal cuts to this program take effect in 2026.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThese data highlight how essential CalFresh is \u2014 and how many households rely on it \u2014 but also where gaps remain,\u201d de la Haye said. \u201cEven with assistance, many families in L.A. County are unable to consistently purchase enough nutritious food.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2>Recommendations to strengthen food access in 2026<\/h2>\n<p>Based on their findings, the research team identifies several strategies that could help improve food and nutrition security across L.A. County as costs continue to rise and federal benefit reductions take effect. These include:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Improving coordination across local, state and federal agencies to respond to evolving policy changes and community needs.<\/li>\n<li>Investing in local data collection and program coordination to help agencies adapt to emerging challenges.<\/li>\n<li>Expanding outreach and enrollment efforts for CalFresh, along with policies that help families maintain benefits.<\/li>\n<li>Strengthening local food system infrastructure to increase access to healthy, affordable and culturally relevant foods.<\/li>\n<li>Advancing policies to enhance household financial stability, particularly for residents who earn too much to qualify for safety net programs but still struggle with the region\u2019s high cost of living.<\/li>\n<li>Bolstering food banks and emergency food providers to meet both ongoing need and disaster-related disruptions.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>These recommendations, researchers emphasize, reflect areas where coordinated action could mitigate the pressures many households are expected to face in the year ahead.<\/p>\n<h2>About the study<\/h2>\n<p>The findings are based on data from the <a href=\"https:\/\/uasdata.usc.edu\/index.php\">Understanding America Study<\/a>, a nationally recognized internet panel administered by the Center for Economic and Social Research. For this report, researchers surveyed a representative sample of 1,248 to 1,357 L.A. County residents between January and October 2025 to assess food and nutrition security, food program participation, and access to healthy foods.<\/p>\n<p>This study was supported by Public Exchange and the Food Systems Institute, based at USC Dornsife, and a grant from the National Science Foundation. The Los Angeles Regional Food Bank was a collaborator.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n\n\n  <\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n  \n        \n  \n    \n\n\n\n\n\n\n<div\n  class=\"cc--component-container cc--article-related-stories \"\n\n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  \n  >\n  <div class=\"c--component c--article-related-stories\"\n    \n      >\n\n    \n  <div class=\"inner-wrapper\">\n              \n<div class=\"f--field f--section-title\">\n\n    \n  <h2>\n          Related Articles\n      <\/h2>\n\n\n<\/div>\n    \n                  <article>\n              \n<div class=\"f--field f--cta-title\">\n\n    \n  <h3>\n          <a href=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/is-ai-really-writing-ancient-authors-would-have-said-no\/\" \n                        class=\"\" \n      >Is AI really \u2018writing\u2019? From a priestess to philosophers, ancient authors would have said\u00a0\u2018no\u2019<\/a>\n      <\/h3>\n\n\n<\/div>\n        <\/article>\n              <article>\n              \n<div class=\"f--field f--cta-title\">\n\n    \n  <h3>\n          <a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/giqbYRVn5v4\" \n         target=\"_blank\"                 class=\"\" \n      >\u2018Trojan Talks\u2019: USC President Beong-Soo Kim talks with Assal Habibi<\/a>\n      <\/h3>\n\n\n<\/div>\n        <\/article>\n              <article>\n              \n<div class=\"f--field f--cta-title\">\n\n    \n  <h3>\n          <a href=\"https:\/\/today.usc.edu\/top-k-12-students-to-compete-in-science-olympiad-at-usc\/\" \n         target=\"_blank\"                 class=\"\" \n      >Top K-12 students to compete in Science Olympiad at USC<\/a>\n      <\/h3>\n\n\n<\/div>\n        <\/article>\n            <\/div>\n\n\n  <\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>USC Dornsife study finds that food insecurity held steady at 24% in 2025, with improvements for low-income households and rising strain among others.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":26029,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[26,24],"tags":[64,49,80,60],"class_list":["post-26026","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-health","category-social-impact","tag-center-for-economic-and-social-research","tag-food-insecurity","tag-public-exchange","tag-research"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.1.1 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Food insecurity remains high in L.A. County, but who it affects is changing<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"USC Dornsife study finds food insecurity stayed at 24% in 2025, with improvements for low-income households and rising strain for others\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/food-insecurity-still-high-in-la-county-but-who-it-affects-is-changing\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Food insecurity still high in LA County, but who it affects is changing\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"USC Dornsife study finds food insecurity stayed at 24% in 2025, with improvements for low-income households and rising strain for others\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/food-insecurity-still-high-in-la-county-but-who-it-affects-is-changing\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"USC Dornsife News\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/uscdornsife\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-12-09T14:30:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-03-05T00:51:12+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2025\/12\/px-food-insecurity-top.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"2000\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1150\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Darrin Joy\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@uscdornsife\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@uscdornsife\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/food-insecurity-still-high-in-la-county-but-who-it-affects-is-changing\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/stories\/food-insecurity-still-high-in-la-county-but-who-it-affects-is-changing\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Darrin Joy\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/dornsife.usc.edu\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/851085523b73581e3387a7fc90cadb96\"},\"headline\":\"Food insecurity remains high in L.A. 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