Island Harvest Food Bank Responds to Feeding America’s Map the Meal Gap Report on Hunger on Long Island

New study shows a 10% increase in people who are food-insecure in Nassau & Suffolk counties

LONG ISLAND, NY — May 14, 2025 — Feeding America®, the nation’s leading hunger relief organization, has just released its annual Map the Meal Gap study, revealing a staggering 10% surge in the number of people grappling with food insecurity in Nassau and Suffolk counties in 2023. “This is an urgent call to action that demands immediate attention from our representatives in the federal government,” stated Randi Shubin Dresner, president & CEO of Island Harvest Food Bank, the region’s leading hunger relief and human services organization.

The 2023 Map the Meal Gap report for Long Island paints a stark picture, estimating that a staggering 240,470 people are now struggling with food insecurity, a significant 10% increase from the 2022 estimate of 221,190 people. “The scale of this issue cannot be overstated,” said Ms. Shubin Dresner, who noted that one in 12 Long Islanders experienced food insecurity in 2023, up from one in 13 in 2022. The child food insecurity rate on Long Island remained flat, with the report showing 44,520 children who experienced food insecurity in 2023 as opposed to 44,780 in 2022.

“Food insecurity on Long Island has intensified since the pandemic, not improved. The federal government’s reckless decision to cut spending on emergency food programs is expected to further increase these alarming numbers, along with the number of families seeking the region’s emergency food support system, including many who have never needed such services before,” said Ms. Shubin Dresner. “The high cost of living in the region, combined with consistently high grocery and everyday essentials, is putting immense pressure on working families, grandparents, and veterans, many of whom are just one car repair, one medical emergency, or another crisis away from financial hardship.”

Suffolk County Executive Edward Romaine added, “I have great concern about food insecurity among people on Long Island with limited means. I strongly believe that in a country and county as great as ours, no one should go hungry.”

Island Harvest distributed approximately 18.3 million pounds of food in calendar year 2024. It is on track to distribute 20 million pounds in 2025 through its network of more than 300 member agencies and direct service programs to children, senior citizens, and veterans.

“The profound discrepancies in the poverty level on Long Island, caused by outdated federal guidelines that do not consider the high cost of living here, are having a significant impact on our community and the chronic and persistent issue of hunger. We urge our representatives to take a regional look at poverty, recognizing and reflecting on the real cost of living on Long Island versus other areas of the country, concluded Ms. Shubin Dresner.

Below are some topline results from the Map the Meal Gap study for Long Island. Click here for the complete study: https://map.feedingamerica.org/county/2023/overall/new-york/organization/island-harvest

• 240,470 people who lived with food insecurity in 2023.
• 221,190 people who lived with food insecurity in 2022.
• A ten percent increase from 2022 to 2023.
• One in 12 Long Islanders, or 8.3%, experienced food insecurity in 2023, up from one in 13 in 2022, an increase of 7.6% in 2023.

Demographic Breakdown:

• Twelve percent food insecurity among Black persons in 2023, up from 9% in 2022.
• One in eight food insecurity ratio among Black people in 2023, up from one in 11 in 2022.
• Sixteen percent food insecurity among Hispanic people in 2023, up from 15% in 2022.
• One in six food insecurity ratio Among Hispanic Persons (Any Race) in 2023, up from one in seven in 2022.
• Five percent food insecurity rate among White, Non-Hispanic persons in 2023, up from 4% in 2022.
• One in 20 food insecurity ratio among White, Non-Hispanic Persons in 2023, up from one in 25 in 2022.

Food Insecurity Among Children:

• 7.2% – childhood food insecurity rate in 2023, remained unchanged 7.3% in 2022.
• 44,520 – number of children who experienced food insecurity in 2023, versus 44,780 in 2022.
• Food insecurity rate among children in households with incomes 185% below the federal poverty line in 2023 is 58%, down slightly from 61% in 2022.
• However, the food insecurity rate among children in households with incomes above 185% of the federal poverty line in 2023 is 42%, up from 39% in 2022.
• This implies that food insecurity is decreasing in households with access to emergency food programs and increasing among households excluded from emergency food programs on Long Island. This likely reflects our area’s high cost of living and is an example of the “fiscal cliff” that affects our families.

Nassau County:

• 107,760 – The number of people living with food insecurity in Nassau in 2023.
• 97,520 The number of people who lived with food insecurity in Nassau in 2022
• There was a ten percent increase in people living with food insecurity in Nassau in 2023.
• 7.8% Food insecurity among Nassau residents in 2023, up from 7% in 2022.
• One in 13 Nassau residents experienced food insecurity in 2023, up from one in 14 in 2022.
• 19,710 children who experienced food insecurity in Nassau in 2023, up from 19,590 in 2022.
• 6.6% Food insecurity rate among children in Nassau County in 2023, level with 2022.
• One in 15 – Food insecurity ratio among children in Nassau County in 2023, level with 2022.

Suffolk County:

• 132,710 – The number of persons who lived with food insecurity in Suffolk in 2023.
• 123,570 – The number of persons who lived with food insecurity in Suffolk in 2022
• There was a ten percent increase in people living with food insecurity in Suffolk in 2023.
• 8.7% food insecurity among Suffolk residents in 2023, up from 8.1% in 2022.
• One in 11 Suffolk residents experienced food insecurity in 2023, up from one in 12 in 2022.
• 24,810 is the number of children who experienced food insecurity in Suffolk in 2023, slightly down from 25,190 in 2022.
• 7.8% food insecurity rate among children in Suffolk County in 2023, flat from 8% in 2022.
• The one-in-thirteen food insecurity ratio among children in Suffolk County in 2023 was down nominally from one in 12 in 2022.