The number of Brazilian households facing some level of food insecurity decreased from 34.9% to 30.2% between 2004 and 2009. It means that, last year, 65.6 million resident persons in 17.7 million households faced some kind of food restriction or, at least, were concerned about possibly facing restriction due to the lack of resources to buy food. These data are presented by the supplementary survey of the National Household Sample Survey (PNAD) 2009 about food security, which also shows that this condition was observed in 69.8% of the 58.6 million private households in Brazil. These places made up 40.9 million dwellings with a total 126,2 million persons, what is equivalent to 65.8% of the residents in private households in the country.

The survey also shows that food insecurity was more severe in the North and Northeast Regions and reached, respectively, 40.3% and 46.1% of the households. Besides, according to some socio-economic variables, food insecurity was more severe in households with monthly household income per capita below one minimum wage (55%), in households with residents under 18 years of age (37.2%), black and brown (43.4%) and with less than one year of schooling (20.2% - moderate or severe).

As in 2004, the 2009 edition has been done in partnership with the Ministry of Social Development and Combat to Hunger (MDS). 

The survey uses the classification of the Brazilian Food Insecurity Scale (EBIA, in Portuguese), considering the period of reference of the three months prior to the date of interview. Food-secure households are those in which residents had proper access to food in terms of amount or quality and were not in risk of facing food restriction in a near future. In households with mild food insecurity and in those where there is reduction of food quality there was concern about the amount of food in the future.  Moderate food security exists if residents have experienced, in the period of reference, some kind of restriction in relation to the amount of food available. Finally, in households with severe food insecurity, besides adult members, children, if there were any, also faced food scarcity, what might even reach its most serious effect: starvation.

The proportion of households with mild food insecurity was estimated as 18.7%, that is, 11.0 million, in an area inhabited by 40.1 million persons (20.9% of the population). The proportion of households with moderate food insecurity was 6.5%, what was equivalent to 3.8 million, in an area inhabited by 14.3 million persons 7.4%  of the total). Out of the total number of households, 5.0% (2.9 million) were classified severely food-insecure. This situation affected 11.2 million persons (5.8% of the dwellers of private households).

In 2004, mild, moderate and severe food insecurity in households reached 18.0%, 9.9% and 7.0%, respectively. These households were inhabited by 20.3%, 11.3% and 8.2% of the residents of private households.  That shows increase of the percentage of mild food insecurity and decrease of the percentage of moderate and severe food insecurity.

In 2009, whereas 6.2% and 4.6% of the urban households were moderately and severely food-insecure, respectively, in the urban area, these figures were 8.6% and 7.0%.  In 2004, 5.3% of the population in urban households faced food insecurity; in rural ones, the equivalent figure  was 8.4%. A total 6.9% of the residents of urban areas faced moderate food insecurity conditions, versus 10.1% of rural area residents. 

Between 2004 and 2009, there was decrease of the proportion of households with residents facing food insecurity both in the urban area (from 33.3% to 29.4%) and in the rural area (from 43.6% to 35.1%).  There was, in relation to 2004, decrease of the proportion of households facing severe and moderate food insecurity both in the urban and in the rural area.  However, when data are disaggregated by intensity of food insecurity, it was observed that in the rural area there was decrease of the proportion of households facing mild food insecurity, what was not observed in the urban area.  In 2009, among the households in the rural area facing food insecurity, 55.8% were mildly food-insecure; in 2004, 46.2% were in this category. 

Food insecurity is highest in households with a big population

Households with food security or insecurity differed in terms of possession of goods, access to basic services and other characteristics. In households with up to three residents, 9.7% faced food moderate or severe food insecurity and 74.7% were food-secure.  In households inhabited by seven or more persons, 30.8% experienced food restriction and 41.4% did not have any concern about the scarcity of food.  In households with at least one resident aged 18 and over, the situation was similar.

Among food-insecure households, the proportion of those rented or leased (29.5%) was bigger than that of food-secure households (24.2%). As for the possession of goods, 95.8% of the food-secure households had a refrigerator, whereas, among the ones facing food insecurity, 75.7% had this appliance.  These differences were observed in all the goods surveyed, and, the strongest the level of food insecurity, the bigger the proportion of households that had this specific good.  Between 2004 and 2009, the proportion of households with possession of the goods surveyed increased, even among the households facing severe food insecurity.  In 2004, 1.3% of them had a computer; in 2009, 6.0%.  The radio was the only good for which there was decrease of the percentage of households, however, among the households facing severe food insecurity, there was increase (from 71.4% in 2004, to 73.2%, in 2009).

The same took place in relation to services.  Mildly food-insecure households had proportionally less access to sewage disposal (46.3%) than food-secure ones (57.1%). Considering severe food insecurity, the percentage of households having access to this service was even smaller (32.0%). The increase of access to services between 2004 and 2009 was observed in all the levels of food insecurity.

55% of mildly or moderately food insecure households received half a minimum wage per capita

The lower the monthly household per capita income range, the bigger was the proportion of households facing moderate or severe food insecurity. About 55.0% of the households in these conditions were in monthly household per capita income range of up to half of a minimum wage and 1.9% of more than 2 minimum wages.  On the other hand, 13.7% of the food-secure households belonged to the range of up to half of a minimum age and 26.2% of more than 2 minimum wages per capita.  

Approximately 25.4 million persons lived in mildly or moderately food-insecure households. Among them, 33.2% inhabited households with monthly income per capita of up to half of a minimum wage.  The proportion of persons living in food-secure households with this income per capita was 4.8%.  

Food insecurity is highest in households with residents aged less than 18 years of age

Private households with at least one resident aged less than 18 years of age recorded percentages of food insecurity above those observed where only adults lived.  Among households without residents aged less than 18,  77.8% were food-secure, whereas the presence of some resident under this age reduced the proportion to 62.8%. This pattern was observed in all the Major Regions; the biggest difference was recorded in the Northeast: 17.3 percentage points. The increase of proportion of food security for all the Major Regions between 2004 and 2009 was more significant in households where there were residents under 18 years of age, especially in the North and Northeast.  

The percentage of residents in private food-secure or food-insecure households confirms that food-insecurity was bigger in households with children, and that it increased with age.  In 2009, 8.1% of the population aged 0 to 17 faced severe food-insecurity, whereas in the population aged 65 and over, the equivalent figure was 3.6%.  

Between 2004 and 2009, there was increase of the proportion of food security, most significantly for residents of younger age groups.  In 2004, 49.4% of the residents aged 0 to 4 did not have any food restriction or even the concern that food might end before they were able to purchase more, what made up a difference of 7.3 percentage points in relation to 2009. In the group aged 5 to 17, the growth of food security was 6.3 percentage points (51.5%, in 2004), whereas in the group aged 65 and over it was 4.4 percentage points (71.8%, in 2004).  All the Major Regions had the same pattern, but the North and Northeast recorded bigger percentages of food insecurity in all the age groups when compared to results from other Regions.

Food insecurity is highest in households with a female reference person

The proportion of moderate or severe food insecurity was highest in households with a female reference person 10.2% of the households with a male reference person and 14.2% with a female one. This difference was most significant where there were people under 18. In this case, the proportion of moderate or severe food insecurity was 11.5% when the reference person was male and 17.5% when it was a female one.  

By Major Region, the proportion of households whose residents faced some kind of food restriction was, in general, bigger in those with a female reference person.  In the Northeast Region, there was no significant difference in the percentage of households facing food insecurity associated to the sex of the reference person. In this case, the estimate was 25.0% when the reference person was a man and 24.4% when it was a woman. On the other hand, this Major Region held the highest levels of severe (11.4%), moderate (13.2%) and mild (24.4%) food security in households with a female reference person.  The biggest difference (4.2 percentage points) in the proportion of mild food insecurity occurred in the Major Region with the lowest percentages, the South.   

Black and brown population face more food insecurity than the white one  

There was not significant difference in the proportion of men and women subject to food restriction.  In 2009, these percentages were estimated as 34.1% of the men (31.8 million) and 34.3% of the women (33.7 million).

The ethnicity of residents had a different impact on the percentage of food security.  Among the total 13.3 million black and 84.7 brow persons, 19.2% and 18.3% were facing moderate or severe food insecurity.  Among white people (92.4 million), this figure was 7.5%.

Percentage of food insecurity decreases among all levels of schooling

Schooling is an important factor in the determination of food security.  The biggest the level of schooling, the lowest was the percentage of moderate or severe food security.  In 2004, among those without instruction or with less than one year of schooling, 29.2% faced moderate or severe food restriction.  Among persons with 11 to 14 years of schooling, this percentage was 4.1 times lower (7.1%).  In 2009, there was reduction of moderate or severe food insecurity in all the levels of schooling, and, although this relationship has been maintained, the ration between the percentages of aforementioned schooling levels fell to 3.4.

Major Regions followed the same pattern.  Nevertheless, the Northeast and North had higher percentages of residents with moderate and severe food security levels than others, among all levels of schooling. 

Considering only the residents aged less than 18, 78.4% used to attend school or day-care center, whereas among those who lived in mildly or severely food-insecure households, 75.4% used to.

North and Northeast Region have 40.3% and 46.1% of food-insecure households

Households in the five Major Regions had different levels of food-insecurity. Whereas in the North and Northeast, respectively, 40.3% and 46.1% of the households were food-insecure, in the Southeast (23.3%) and South (18.7%) the proportions were below ¼ of the households. Considering severe food insecurity, the uneven distribution by Major Region remains.  In the North and Northeast the proportions of households in this condition were 9.2% and 9.3% (in 2004, 11.8% and 13.2%). In the Southeast (2.9%) and South (2.1%), the proportion was below 3.0%; in 2004, these Regions had reported figures of  4.1% and 3.7%, respectively.

Regional differences remained with reference to household status. In the South and Central West, the proportion of dwellings in the rural area where residents faced food insecurity was above that in the urban area. In the rural South of the country, in 85.8% of the households there was no worry about the possibility being out of food products before a new purchase. The Northeast Region, besides recording the highest percentages of moderately or severely food insecure households (20.4% in the urban area and 24.0% in the rural area), also accounted for the major difference between the urban and rural areas (3.6 percentage points).  

Food insecurity is lowest in Maranhão (35.4%) and highest in Santa Catarina (85.2%)

 Among the Federation Units, Santa Catarina remained having the biggest percentage (85.2%) of  households facing food insecurity in 2009, 1.0 percentage points above the figure recorded in 2004. Rio Grande do Sul, after increase of 5.5 percentage points compared to figures in 2004, was the state to present the second biggest percentage (80.8%), followed by Paraná (79.6%).  All the states in the Northeast recorded lower percentages compared to the national average (69.8%); in Maranhão (35.4%) and Piauí (41.4%) less than 50% of the households could guarantee healthy nutrition and in adequate amount to their population.   In 2009, also in the North Region, all the states had food security levels below that recorded for Brazil; in the Central West, Goiás was the only state in this condition.