Poverty & Income Volatility

USDA's food and nutrition assistance programs help address the needs of low-income Americans.

ERS examines how income, income volatility, and participation in various food and nutrition assistance programs relate to:

economic well-being,
diet and nutrition,
food security and food spending,
child poverty, and
food accessibility and the food environment.

ERS has compiled a database of over 1,000 peer-reviewed research reports and articles covering a broad spectrum of food and nutrition assistance research based on both intramural and extramural research published at ERS and elsewhere. The database is searchable by title, lead author, topic, year of publication, data set analyzed and exact word(s) or phrases contained in the publication’s bibliographic citation. See Food and Nutrition Assistance Research Reports Database.

Rural America at a Glance: 2024 Edition Statistical Supplement to Household Food Security in the United States in 2023 Household Food Security in the United States in 2023 The Food and Nutrition Assistance Landscape: Fiscal Year 2023 Annual Report Comparing Food Insecurity Among the U.S. Military and Civilian Adult Populations

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For Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) Households, Fruit and Vegetable Affordability Is Partly a Question of Budgeting New Super Stores Slightly Expanded Purchasing Power for Participants in USDA’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) Updated Food Access Research Atlas Now Maps Changes in Low-Income and Low-Supermarket Access Areas in 2019 Higher Vehicle Exclusions and Asset Limits in SNAP May Encourage Asset Accumulation Among Low-Income Households Food Pantries Provide Emergency Food to More Than One-Quarter of Food-Insecure Households

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Food and Nutrition Assistance Research Reports Database Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) Data System Food Security in the United States FoodAPS National Household Food Acquisition and Purchase Survey SNAP Policy Data Sets

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Food & Nutrition Assistance Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) Food Assistance Data & Collaborative Research Programs Food Security in the U.S. WIC Program

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