1 in 6 Southern Nevadans are food insecure, report says

About 1 in 6 Southern Nevadans are food insecure, according to an annual report from the region’s food bank.

More than 377,000 people in Southern Nevada may not know where their next meal is coming from, according to Three Square Food Bank’s annual “Map the Meal Gap” report. Researchers found the rate is up from 1 in 7 residents last year.

The study also found that about one in five children in Southern Nevada are food insecure — a rate that is unchanged year-over-year.

Beth Martino, president and CEO of Three Square, said being food insecure generally means those people “may not know where their next meal is coming from.” She said the report, which is compiled by national food bank network Feeding America using data from annual census surveys, validates “what we’re seeing happening here already in the community.”

“Over the last couple of years, we have seen a fairly steady rise in the number of people coming to food pantries, and we also hear from the food pantries and programs that we work with that people are needing more help than they needed before,” Martino said in a Wednesday interview. “So in addition to seeing more people, those people need more frequent assistance.”

Three Square is Nevada’s largest food bank and the only one in Southern Nevada. It distributed 49 million pounds of food in Southern Nevada last year, the equivalent of about 41 million meals, according to the food bank. The report said 57.8 million meals would be needed each year to close the food insecurity gap between what is needed and what is available through federal nutrition programs and charitable organizations.

Three Square also serves Esmeralda, Lincoln and Nye counties. Their rates of food insecurity fall between 13.6 and 21.9 percent.

The ZIP code with the highest food insecurity rate, according to the report, was 89049, in Tonopah, with 34 percent. In Clark County, 89101 in central Las Vegas had the highest rate, 26.6 percent.

Feeding America determined the results by analyzing the relationship between food insecurity and factors including unemployment and poverty, according to its methodology. That data comes from Current Population survey and American Community Survey results from surveys taken two years ago.

“This is 2023 information that we’re publishing in 2025, so that means we have a picture of what things looked like at that time, which would be, by most standards, considered a healthy time, economically,” Martino said. “So if, over the course of the next year, something happens to SNAP benefits or Medicaid eligibility or there are further cuts that affect food banks, what does that mean in our community?”

Three Square has scaled back its food distribution to partnering food pantries by about half of its typical per-family amount after cuts from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. In March, the federal government terminated funding for two grant programs used to operate the Home Feeds Nevada local purchasing and distribution program.

“It’s really for us an issue of more food has been going out over the last several months, but less food has been coming in,” Martino said.

Officials with Catholic Charities of Southern Nevada said the “Map the Meals Gap” report result did not surprise them. President and CEO Sara Ramirez said demand in the nonprofit’s community food pantry has had a 16 percent year-over-year increase. Demand for free daily meals at St. Vincent Lied Dining Facility has also gone up 6 percent, while the waitlist for the Meals on Wheels program for homebound seniors has been consistent at about 1,000 seniors.

“We are absolutely seeing the same concerning trends on the ground at our food pantry and wider food programs,” Ramirez said in a statement. “The need for food assistance is growing, and we are doing everything we can to meet that demand with dignity and compassion.”

Both organizations said they also turn to community support to keep up with the need amid less support from federal government sources.

“We rely on the generosity of our community to continue providing critical service,” Ramirez said. “Donations of food, funds and volunteer time are now especially meaningful.”

Contact McKenna Ross at mross@reviewjournal.com. Follow @mckenna_ross_ on X.