The overall food insecurity rate for Harris County is 18.2% as of 2023, according to Feeding America’s 2025 “Map the Meal Gap” report published May 14. That percentage equates to 863,820 people in the county.
This percentile has risen since 2019, when it was 13.9%—or 644,710 people, according to the 2023 report.
Feeding America’s “Map the Meal Gap” was created to estimate the amount of food insecurity in America and discover the reasons behind the food insecurity. Factors such as race, income, geography, age and others can play a part in the amount of food insecurity in a county, according to the report, which includes the following:
- The population of food-insecure individuals in the county
- The rate of food insecurity
- The estimated program eligibility among food-insecure people
- Annual food budget shortfalls
- Average meal costs
The annual food budget shortfall—which is the amount of additional money needed to meet food needs—is based on Current Population Survey responses. For Harris County, the estimated food budget shortfall was $325.46 million in 2019 and has since risen to $539.95 million as of 2023, according to the report.
