Updates
Food Allergies & Food Insecurity in America: How dietary restrictions widen the gap in equitable food access
July 21, 2025
Food insecurity in the U.S. is already a widespread and growing challenge, affecting over 47 million people in 2023 alone, including 13 million children. For individuals and families living with food allergies or intolerances, navigating food insecurity can be even more complex and often more dangerous.
What is Food Insecurity?
The USDA defines food insecurity as the limited or uncertain access to enough food for an active, healthy life. It doesn’t always mean hunger. It can mean relying on food pantries or inconsistent food sources, or having to make difficult choices between food and other necessities like rent or medication.
Now imagine having to make those choices while also avoiding foods that could cause a serious allergic reaction. For people with food allergies or intolerances, food insecurity isn’t just about having enough food. It’s about having the right kind of food. The kind that won’t send someone to the hospital or make a chronic health condition worse. For millions of Americans, that kind of food just isn’t available, and it can be an isolating experience.
The Overlap of Food Allergies and Food Insecurity
Food allergies affect an estimated 33 million Americans, including 5.6 million children. The most common allergens include:
- Milk
- Eggs
- Peanuts
- Tree nuts
- Wheat
- Soy
- Fish
- Shellfish
The most common allergens are inexpensive, shelf-stable, and protein-rich. This makes them staples in many emergency food programs, food pantries, and school cafeterias. For people with allergies or food intolerances, these staples can be dangerous or even deadly.
According to Food Equality Initiative, 1 in 3 food-insecure families report food allergies in their household. Many report skipping food distributions entirely because the risks are too high, or because they’ve been disappointed too many times before.
For food-insecure families dealing with allergies, their options are limited:
- Pantries and food banks often don’t have allergen-free alternatives.
- Allergen-free foods like oat milk, gluten-free pasta, or nut-free snacks are often more expensive and rarely donated.
- Families are left choosing between going hungry or risking a reaction.
Additionally, the burden of food allergies isn’t evenly distributed. Studies by the National Institute of Health have shown that Black, Asian, and Hispanic children are more likely to have food allergies but less likely to be formally diagnosed. Combine this with systemic issues like underinvestment in marginalized communities in America and higher rates of food insecurity, and the problem becomes a deep equity issue.
This is a fixable problem, but it requires awareness, advocacy, and action.
- Pantries and food banks can improve their allergen labeling and diversify their offerings.
- Food recovery and food rescue organizations can provide diverse food access options in local communities.
- Policy advocacy is needed to ensure that programs like SNAP and WIC offer appropriate choices for people with allergies.
- Organizations and food service programs need increased awareness of the interconnectedness of food insecurity and food allergies.
How We Don’t Waste Supports Safe, Dignified Food Access
At We Don’t Waste, we know that equitable food access means more than just calories; it means providing culturally relevant, nutritious, and safe food for everyone.
Through our food recovery and distribution program, we strive to offer choice and accommodate diverse food offerings when possible. Food recovery is, by its nature, more diverse in food recovered and distributed than many food purchase programs because of the increased sources of food coming into the system. Food recovery organizations take surplus food from grocers, event caterers, local food businesses, and more.
Want to Help?
- Donate allergy-safe, shelf-stable food like gluten-free pasta, nut-free granola bars, or dairy-free milk alternatives next time you participate in a food drive.
- Support nonprofits advocating for food justice with an equity lens.
- Raise awareness during Food Allergy Awareness Week and beyond.
When it comes to food insecurity, we can’t settle for one-size-fits-all solutions. Every plate should be safe. Every meal should nourish. Every person deserves access.