A Rights-Based Approach to Food Insecurity in the United States

TLDR

Food insecurity remains a serious public health issue, affecting 11.1 % of U.S. households and linked to poor child development and adult health. The authors propose adopting a human‑rights framework to address food insecurity, engaging affected individuals and benchmarking progress against national action plans.

Abstract

Food insecurity is a serious public health problem associated with poor cognitive and emotional development in children and with depression and poor health in adults. Despite sizable continued investments in federal food assistance, food insecurity still affects 11.1% of US households--almost the same rate as in 1995, when annual measurement began. As a fresh approach to solving the problem of food insecurity, we suggest adoption of a human rights framework. This approach could actively engage those affected and would ensure that food security monitoring would be compared to benchmarks in national action plans. We describe key elements of a right-to-food approach, review challenges to implementing it, and suggest actions to foster its adoption.