Facts On Hunger and Poverty In Colorado

  • Nearly 1 in 7 Coloradans struggle with hunger, facing times when there is not enough money to buy food.
    (U.S. Department of Agriculture, 2012-2014 average in Household Food Security in the United States in 2014, September 2015)
  • Nearly 1 in 8 Coloradans live in poverty, including more than 1 in 7 kids.
    (U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey: Poverty, September 2015)
  • Nearly 1 in 5 Colorado kids may not always know when or where they will get their next meal.
    (Colorado Children’s Campaign, 2015 KIDS COUNT in Colorado!, March 2015)
  • More than 1 in 7 Colorado seniors struggle with hunger, often leading to choices between food and medication.
    (James Ziliak and Craig Gunderson, The State of Senior Hunger in America 2013: An Annual Report, Prepared for the National Foundation to End Senior Hunger, May 2015)
  • Among all Colorado children, those under the age of 6 are most likely to be in poverty. They also are most at risk of living in homes without enough food.
    (Colorado Children’s Campaign, 2014 KIDS COUNT Colorado!, March 2014; Colorado Children’s Campaign, 2011 KIDS COUNT Colorado!, 2011)
  • More than 1 in 4 working families in Colorado do not have enough food to meet their basic needs.
    (Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2011, September 2012)
  • About 23,500 veterans in Colorado live in households that participated in food stamps at some point during the past 12 months.
    (Center of Budget Policies and Priorities, SNAP Helps Roughly 1.7 Million Struggling Veterans, November 2014)