Global Hunger Declines in 2025 but Progress Remains Fragile: SOFI 2026 Report

Global hunger declined for a third consecutive year in 2025, with 7.8 percent of the world’s population facing hunger.

The report was published by five United Nations specialized agencies: the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the UN World Food Programme (WFP), and the World Health Organization (WHO). While the data shows a sustained improvement from 8.6 percent in 2022, the authors warn that progress is fragile and unevenly distributed.

Regional Disparities in Hunger and Food Insecurity

Recovery from food instability varies by region. Asia and Latin America and the Caribbean have seen steady improvements. However, Africa now has the highest number of hungry people in absolute terms, totaling approximately 309 million people, compared to 292 million in Asia. The share of Africa’s population facing hunger decreased from 20.3 percent in 2024 to 20.0 percent in 2025, but the continent’s rapidly growing population sustains high totals.

Broader food insecurity—defined as being forced to compromise on the quality or quantity of food—affected 25.8 percent of the global population, or 2.1 billion people, in 2025. This is a decrease from 27.1 percent in 2024, though levels remain above pre-pandemic figures.

The SOFI 2026 report highlights stark regional gaps in food access: Africa’s insecurity rate stood at 56.6 percent in 2025, while Asia recorded 20.3 percent, Latin America and the Caribbean 22.9 percent, and Northern America and Europe 8.7 percent. The report notes that women and people in rural areas remain disproportionately affected.

Impact of Middle East Conflict and Climate Shocks

The report updates five-year hunger projections based on the conflict in the Middle East. The crisis has driven food inflation through higher fertilizer and energy prices. Under this scenario, 510 to 520 million people may still face hunger by 2030, which is higher than the pre-conflict projection of 503 million.

UN agencies warn that these projections do not yet account for potential weather extremes, such as El Niño in 2026 and 2027. These climate events, combined with reductions in humanitarian funding and official development assistance, threaten to undermine the progress toward the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals.

Stalled Progress on Global Nutrition Targets

Global progress on maternal and child nutrition is insufficient to meet 2030 targets, according to the report. Indicators for child wasting, stunting, low birthweight, and exclusive breastfeeding show only marginal improvements. Currently, 150 million children under five are stunted, and only 30.8 percent of children aged 6 to 23 months consume a minimally diverse diet.

The report identifies a steady increase in adult obesity, rising from 12.1 percent in 2012 to 16.2 percent in 2024. This trend contradicts the international target to halt the rise of obesity by 2025. Additionally, anemia among women aged 15 to 49 is worsening globally.

The Rising Cost of Healthy Diets

The average global cost of a healthy diet—defined by the FAO and WHO as adequate, balanced, diverse, and moderate—rose to 4.28 purchasing power parity (PPP) dollars per person per day in 2025. This is an increase from 3.44 PPP dollars in 2021 and 2.94 PPP dollars in 2017. The highest costs were recorded in Latin America and the Caribbean at 4.91 PPP dollars.

Despite rising costs, the number of people unable to afford a healthy diet fell from 2.97 billion in 2021 to 2.69 billion in 2025. However, affordability remains a critical issue in Africa, where 66.6 percent of the population could not afford a healthy diet in 2025.

The report attributes high costs to structural differences in agrifood systems. Animal source foods are the primary cost driver in Africa, while vegetables are the largest contributor in Latin America and the Caribbean. Post-farmgate activities, including processing, logistics, and wholesale, account for 70 to 75 percent of consumer prices.

The report shows that progress is possible, but we must move faster. Ending hunger and making healthy diets affordable requires political commitment, sustained investment and enabling policies. Recent crises – from natural disasters like the COVID-19 pandemic to man-made disaster like hotspots of conflicts, the war in Ukraine, the Gaza crisis, and the recent Strait of Hormuz disruption – have demonstrated both the resilience of agrifood systems and the need to strengthen them further to better serve the world’s most vulnerable people, farmers and consumers.
— QU Dongyu, FAO Director-General

While we welcome the clear progress we have made in reducing hunger, a healthy diet still remains unaffordable for one in three people globally. Obesity is rising and progress on maternal and child nutrition is stalling. But we know what works: policies that make healthy food the easy choice, promoting breastfeeding, front-of-pack labelling, taxing unhealthy products, and protecting children from harmful marketing. Healthy diets are not a luxury – they are the foundation of health and must be within everyone’s reach.
— Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General