Kingsport, Tenn. (August 18, 2026) – Tennessee’s five Feeding America food banks announced today that food insecurity across the state has climbed to its highest level in years, across nearly every measure. The organizations, which together serve all 95 Tennessee counties, are the Chattanooga Area Food Bank, Mid-South Food Bank, Second Harvest Food Bank of East Tennessee, Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee, and Second Harvest Food Bank of Northeast Tennessee.
This new data is included in Feeding America’s 2026 Map the Meal Gap, an annual study that measures the population affected by food insecurity and the factors that contribute to need in households across the country, including weekly food-budget shortfalls, demographics, poverty levels, unemployment rates and the cost of food.
“Food insecurity is not a distant problem—it is present in every community in Northeast Tennessee,” said Rhonda Chafin, CEO of Second Harvest Food Bank of Northeast Tennessee (SHFBNT). “Behind every number is a child, family, senior, veteran or neighbor working hard to make ends meet. When we act together, we can help ensure lasting food security.”
Across the Volunteer State
The 2026 Map the Meal Gap study utilizes data from 2024, which indicates that 14.4% of Americans are considered to be food insecure. However, every county in the U.S. is home to people experiencing food insecurity, a term defined by the USDA as a household-level economic and social condition of limited or uncertain access to adequate food.
Of the counties with the highest levels of food insecurity, 84% are in the South, including Tennessee, which has a food insecurity rate of 16.3%. Lake County, located in the northwest corner of the state, has Tennessee’s highest food insecurity rate at 26.6% and the highest child food insecurity rate at 41.2%.
All five of Tennessee’s food bank service areas are above the national rate of food insecurity, with Second Harvest Food Bank of Northeast Tennessee having the highest rate at 18.7%.
Across Tennessee, Black and Hispanic residents face food insecurity at higher rates than white, non-Hispanic residents, with 1 in 3 (29%) Black persons and 1 in 6 (18%) Hispanic persons food insecure, compared to 1 in 8 (13%) of white, non-Hispanic persons.
Hunger at Home (Kingsport Tri-Cities)
Across Northeast Tennessee, Second Harvest Food Bank of Northeast Tennessee’s eight-county service area, 18.7% of people faced hunger in 2024, the highest rate in at least five years. After falling to 13.8% in 2021, food insecurity has risen every year since. In 2023, 17.4% of service area residents faced food insecurity. Hancock County has the highest food insecurity rate in the service area at 24.8% and the highest child food insecurity rate at 30.4%.
Child food insecurity remains high across the region. In 2024, 24% of children in the service area faced hunger, totaling 23,580 children.
Within the eight-county service area, 98,360 people faced hunger in 2024. Food insecurity falls unevenly across racial and ethnic groups, with 31% of Black residents and 20% of Hispanic residents are food insecure, compared with 16% of white, non-Hispanic residents.
Hunger at Home (Chattanooga)
In the Chattanooga Area Food Bank’s 20-county service area, 17.4% of people faced hunger in 2024, the highest rate in at least five years. After falling to 12% in 2021, food insecurity has risen every year since. In 2023, 15.7% of service area residents faced food insecurity. Sequatchie County, Tennessee, has the highest food insecurity rate in the Tennessee portion of their service area at 20.6% and the highest child food insecurity rate at 25.4%.
Child food insecurity remains high across the region. In 2024, 22.6% of children in the service area faced hunger, totaling 54,500 children.
Within the 20-county service area, 196,770 people faced hunger in 2024. Food insecurity falls unevenly across racial and ethnic groups, with 28% of Black residents and 19% of Hispanic residents food insecure, compared with 14% of white, non-Hispanic residents.
Hunger at Home (Memphis)
Across Mid-South Food Bank’s 31-county service area, 16.7% of people faced hunger in 2024, its highest level in at least five years. After falling to 12.4% in 2021, food insecurity climbed to 14.9% in 2022 and 16.7% in 2023, holding at that level in 2024. Lake County, Tennessee, has the highest food insecurity rate in the service area at 26.6% and the highest child food insecurity rate at 41.2%.
Child food insecurity remains high across the region. In 2024, 24.9% of children in the service area faced hunger, totaling 122,490 children.
Within the 31-county service area, 341,610 people faced hunger in 2024. Food insecurity falls unevenly across racial and ethnic groups, with 30% of Black residents and 18% of Hispanic residents are food insecure, compared with 14% of white, non-Hispanic residents.
Hunger at Home (Knoxville)
Across East Tennessee, Second Harvest Food Bank of East Tennessee’s 18-county service area, 16.7% of people faced hunger in 2024, the highest rate in at least five years. After falling to 12% in 2021, food insecurity has risen every year since. In 2023, 15.7% of service area residents faced food insecurity. Scott County has the highest food insecurity rate in the service area at 23.3%, while Cocke County has the highest child food insecurity rate at 31.7%.
Child food insecurity remains high across the region. In 2024, 21.4% of children in the service area faced hunger, totaling 60,180 children.
Within the 18-county service area, 229,980 people faced hunger in 2024. Food insecurity falls unevenly across racial and ethnic groups, with 27% of Black residents and 19% of Hispanic residents are food insecure, compared with 14% of white, non-Hispanic residents.
Hunger at Home (Middle Tennessee)
In Middle and West Tennessee, Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee’s service area, 15.1% of people faced hunger, marking the highest rate in at least six years. After falling to 10.4% in 2021, food insecurity has risen every year since. In 2023, 14.3% of service area residents faced food insecurity. Pickett County in particular has the highest food insecurity rate at 23.9% and the highest child food insecurity rate at 30.6%.
Child food insecurity is rapidly rising across the region. After declining from 12.9% in 2019 to 10.2% in 2021, child food insecurity rates rose to 15.5% in 2022, 16.5% in 2023 and again to 19.6% in 2024. That means 1 in 5 children in the Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee service area now face hunger. This totals 141,880 children.
The number of people facing hunger (479,020) and the rates among Black (27%) and white, non-Hispanic (13%) residents within the 46-county service area all rose to their highest levels in at least six years. The lone exception was the food insecurity rate among Hispanic residents, which fell to 17% from 22% in last year’s report.0
Meeting the Meal Gap
Nationwide, food prices, housing and the cost of basic necessities have remained stubbornly high while federal supports have declined, leaving residents to make difficult choices when it comes to expenses.
In Tennessee, the average cost of a meal is $3.70, and residents who are food insecure face a combined annual food budget shortfall of more than $827 million, the additional money they would need to buy just enough food to meet their needs. 58% of food-insecure Tennesseans have incomes above 185% of the federal poverty line, making them likely ineligible for federal nutrition programs. In these circumstances, Feeding America organizations like Tennessee’s five food banks fill a critical gap, meeting people where they are, with compassion and acceptance, so they can access the resources they need to thrive.
To learn how food insecurity impacts your community, visit FeedingAmerica.org/MaptheMealGap.
The Map the Meal Gap study is supported by Conagra Brands Foundation, Enterprise Mobility Foundation and NielsenIQ/NIQ. Additional key takeaways from the report can be found on the Map the Meal Gap website along with an interactive map that details food insecurity by geography, income, race and ethnicity.
Methodology:
Map the Meal Gap uses publicly available data from USDA Economic Research Service, U.S. Census Bureau and Bureau of Labor Statistics to estimate local food insecurity at the county, congressional district and state levels. The study also estimates local meal costs and food budget shortfalls using food price data from NIQ, based on USDA’s Thrifty Food Plan, and grocery sales tax data for every county and state in the country.