Residents in These 25 Counties are Struggling the Most to Put Food on the Table

Every county in the U.S. has residents who can’t always afford enough food, says Feeding America’s Map the Meal Gap 2016 report.

Nearly 1.7 million people in Illinois fit that description, the report says.

The report documented food insecurity — the lack of access to enough food for a healthy lifestyle — across the country, using data on food costs, unemployment rates, personal budget shortfalls and poverty rates.

In Illinois, around 1,658,280 people were food insecure in 2014 — nearly 13 percent of the population. Children face even higher levels of food insecurity; nearly 20 percent of kids in Illinois didn’t consistently get enough to eat that year.

According to the report, people in these 25 counties face the highest levels of food insecurity in Illinois.

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