Health News Illinois reported: More than one-third of Chicago households now struggle with food insecurity, according to a report released Monday by the Greater Chicago Food Depository.

About 36 percent of Chicago households, lack consistent access to enough food.

Additionally, about 47 percent of households with children struggle with food insecurity, compared to 30 percent of households without children.

The report found inequities persist in the city’s historically underserved neighborhoods. Just over half of households on the south side face food insecurities, compared to 27 percent of households on the northwest side and 20 percent on the north side.

Forty-five percent of households on the west side face food insecurity, compared to 41 percent of households on the southwest side.

The organization said the growth is expected to get worse as federal guidelines shrink support for safety nets.

Since July 2025, enrollment in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program in Cook County dropped by nearly 196,000 individuals.

“This report makes clear what we hear every day from neighbors and community partners: hunger is happening right now, in every part of our city, driven by unaffordability and a shrinking federal safety net,” Greater Chicago Food Depository CEO Kate Maehr said in a statement. “It underscores the lived experience behind the data: parents are skipping meals so their children can eat, older adults are stretching fixed incomes as rent and grocery bills rise, working families are doing everything they can and still coming up short.”

The report, released in partnership with NORC at the University of Chicago, is based on a June survey of 1,200 Chicago residents.

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