This year, the hunger rate has had a big increase. The main factors for such an increase were conflict, climate change, and the COVID-19 pandemic. All these reasons will affect the already high hunger rate even more.
Due to that, we’re wondering what was the rate back in the 20th century? Has the hunger rate increased or decreased since then? Find out all the world hunger rates over time in today’s article.
3 Key World Starvation Statistics Over Time (Editor’s Pick)
- The hunger rate has decreased since 1990.
- The Ethiopian Great famine was the worst hunger crisis.
- In 2017, 20 million people in Africa experienced acute food insecurity.
11 World Hunger Statistics Over Time
1. Since 1970, hunger in the developing world has more than halved.
Despite the high hunger number we’re faced with every day, that rate has more than halved in the last 50 years. In 1970, the hunger rate was 35%, now is less than 15%. However, some studies state that the rate is growing again due to the conflict, COVID-19 pandemic, and many political and economical aspects of some countries.
Source: Our World In Data
2. The hunger rate has decreased since 1990.
If we compare numbers from 1990 and 2021, the numbers aren’t the same, but there are some possibilities they will be in the upcoming years. In 1990, the number of hungry people was more than 1 billion. Now, the count is 957 million people. Over the years, we could see a slight decrease in the numbers. The lowest number was in 2015 when there were 784 million hungry people.
Source: The World Counts
3. More than 10% of a decrease in the rate of undernourished people.
From 1990 to 2021, the rate of undernourished people had a big decrease. In 1990, the rate was 19%, while in 2021, that rate was 8.8%. Through the years, we can see a slow decrease in the rate which is encouraging, however, the number of people fighting undernourishment is still high.
Source: The World Counts
4. The Ethiopian Great famine took one-third of the country’s population.
One of the worst hunger and famine crises was in Ethiopia. From 1888 to 1892, the Ethiopian Great famine afflicted the country and killed roughly around one-third of the population. The famine was caused by recurring drought, food scarcity, failed harvests, conflict, and government policies.
Source: World Vision
5. In 1980, there were 200 food banks in the U.S.
When we look at the 20th century and the years that occur, the world just began finding ways to help the starving people. From 1980 to now, there are over 40,000 food banks, soup kitchens, and pantries that help people fight poverty, hunger, and starvation. There are many more such facilities in the world too.
Source: A Place At the Table
6. In the period of 1989 to 1993, there were 20 million hungry Americans.
Speaking of the United States, there were many people fighting hunger back in the 1990s. But today, that number is more than doubled. Around 42 million Americans have faced food insecurity in 2021, including 13 million children.
Source: A Place At the Table and Feeding America
7. More than 10% of decrease of stunted children.
Food insecurity, hunger, and starvation can cause many health problems, including death. The rate of children stunting fell from 33% of children under the age of five in 2000 to 21.3% in 2019. That is more than 10% of a decrease. However, that is still high and it still represents millions and millions of stunted kids.
Source: Action Against Hunger
8. China’s hunger level fell to 9%.
China is fighting a high rate of hungry people too. However, the country managed to decrease the hunger level from the 1990s when 24% of China’s population fought hunger. In 2016, the rate of hungry people was 9%.
Source: World Food Programme
9. In 2017, millions of people in Africa experienced food insecurity.
African countries fight hunger the most. They have a high number of people fighting food insecurity, a high hunger rate, a high number of undernourished people, and quite a high death rate. Back in 2017, over 20 million people in Ethiopia, Malawi, Kenya, and Zimbabwe experienced acute food insecurity caused by climate change.
Source: Action Against Hunger
10. In 2020, conflict was the primary driver of hunger.
In the previous 2020 year, the main reason for the hunger was conflict. The conflict caused hunger for 99.1 million people in 23 countries. Of course, conflict leads to additional political and economical problems, and in the end, all those factors make the hunger rate go even higher.
Source: Action Against Hunger
11. There were 815 million undernourished people in 2020.
We already mentioned the increase of undernourished people in the last couple of years. In 2020, the number of undernourished people was 815 million. That is 11% of the global population. Due to the ongoing pandemic, as well as climate change and the unstable world, some say that number will have a high increase in the upcoming years.
Source: Fast Company
To Wrap It Up
According to the numbers, the rate of hungry and undernourished people had a high decrease in the last 50 years. However, if we look only at a couple of last years, the rate started to increase again. Due to the combination of many factors, especially the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change, and the rather unstable world we live in, the hunger and starvation rate will definitely have a devastating increase in the years to come.
