Doubts and Criticisms Mount

"For the past 30 years, the USDA's food insecurity metrics have provided a critical window into how well American families are able to meet their food needs," said Professor Colleen Heflin of Syracuse University, who has studied the data since its inception and learned of its cancellation.

It is worth noting that the USDA's decision to terminate this data collection comes at a time when more Americans may be struggling with food shortages. Due to the expiration of pandemic aid programs and inflation driving up food prices, food banks have seen a steady increase in requests for household assistance over the past few years.

According to the latest USDA survey, approximately 13.8 million children lived in households that frequently faced food shortages in 2023, the highest number in nearly a decade.

The cancellation of this survey also follows recent cuts to federal food assistance programs. The "Big and Beautiful" Act passed by Congress and signed by Trump this summer reduced funding and tightened work requirements for recipients of food stamps (the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program).

Craig Gundersen, a former USDA economist who has studied the survey data for nearly 30 years, stated that this information reveals the causes and consequences of food insecurity, including the links between disability, physical and mental health issues, and food insecurity.

Professor Lindsey Smith Taillie of the Nutrition Department at the University of North Carolina's Gillings School of Global Public Health emphasized that without this research, the U.S. will lose a crucial tool for monitoring key health indicators among its population.

"Why would you not want to measure it?" she questioned. "The only reason I can think of for not measuring it is if you plan to cut food assistance—it essentially allows you to pretend we don't have a food insecurity problem."