← All issues
Hunger and malnutrition

Why do 673 million people go hungry in a world that already grows enough food?

673mn
people faced hunger in 2024, down for a second straight year
FAO, 2025
27%
fewer children under 5 suffer from stunting caused by malnutrition in 2022 compared to 2000, from 204 million to 148 million
UNICEF / WHO, 2023
Hunger and malnutrition persist in a world that already grows enough calories to feed 10 billion people. It is not a problem of supply:
Hunger causes children to grow up stunted and suffer academically, while underfed mothers bear smaller, weaker babies. Widespread hunger drives unrest and displacement, and climate change is intensifying the droughts and floods that already drive acute hunger for 87 million people a year.
Sub-Saharan Africa
High severity

Where hunger is deadliest, driven by conflict, drought, and failed harvests.

The map marks the worst-hit areas; hunger is also serious across parts of Latin America, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia.