The Cost of Hunger in Massachusetts

The Greater Boston Food Bank (GBFB), an H2HC Leadership Council member, released its fifth annual statewide survey on food insecurity, The Cost of Hunger in Massachusetts. 

The survey, created in collaboration with Mass General Brigham (MGB) and supported by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education through a United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) grant, revealed that 37% of Massachusetts households are facing food insecurity. The 2025 study sought to understand and quantify the broader societal impacts of food insecurity: impacts on diet quality and nutrition, health and well-being, health care utilization and costs, household financial wellness, and social connectedness.

Key takeaways include:

• Food insecurity in Massachusetts is not a temporary crisis, but it is a persistent and deepening challenge that continues to impact 1 in 3 households.
• The rates of very low food security (food insecurity with hunger) have quadrupled since 2019 to 24%, impacting 650,000 households across the Commonwealth.
• Food-insecure adults and children are significantly more likely to suffer from chronic diseases, poor mental health, and increased health care use and cost.
• Hunger and the ripple effects of food insecurity result in an estimated $1.3 billion in annual Medicaid health care spending across Massachusetts.
• SNAP, WIC, school meals, HRSN, and MEFAP—and the statewide food bank system of charitable community partners providing food, such as food pantries, meal programs, shelters, and mobile markets—remain critical lifelines that work.
• Food-insecure children missed 3x as many non-school activities as food-secure kids.
• Addressing food insecurity requires a sustained, coordinated effort. Policymakers must prioritize hunger in legislative agendas. Funders must invest in scalable, evidence-based and evaluated, community-driven solutions. And cross-sector partners—from health care to housing—must work together to address the root causes.

Read the report to learn more.