UCLA Center for Health Policy Research

More than 2.24 million low-income adults in California cannot always afford to put food on the table and, as a result, almost one out of three of these adults, 658,000, experiences episodes of hunger. This is a sad reality in a state that has the largest agricultural economy in the United States and produces an abundance of high-quality fruits and vegetables for much of the nation. The ranks of "food insecure" Californians include not just the most impoverished individuals but working adults, retired older persons with fixed incomes, and many parents with children. These new findings are based on data from the California Health Interview Survey (CHIS 2001). CHIS 2001 is California's largest representative health survey of the state and its counties. The survey included a sizeable sample of the estimated 8 million low-income Californians -- those living in households with incomes below 200% of the federal poverty level. It was found that more than 8.3% of these low-income adults experience food insecurity with hunger. Another 20.0%, one out of five low-income adults, experiences food insecurity that falls short of hunger. Food insecurity, with or without hunger, causes families to forego such basic needs as rent, utilities, and medical care in order to put food on the table. Food security is defined as access to an adequate nutritious diet. Food security is a goal of any society, essential for the good health of all. Based on these new CHIS 2001 findings, the paradox of food security and hunger in food-abundant California clearly shows that this state can do better.