Nearly Half of Brazilian Municipalities Lack Adequate Food Security Structures in 2024, IBGE Survey Reveals
IBGE's 2024 survey reveals that half of Brazil's municipalities lack sufficient organizational structures for food security despite increased council activity and practical hunger mitigation actions.
- • 49% of Brazilian municipalities lack organizational structures to address food security in 2024.
- • Only 7.1% have municipal plans to combat hunger, while 51% have active food security councils.
- • North and Northeast regions show higher presence of food security structures than South, Southeast, and Central-West.
- • Brazil exited the UN's 'Map of Hunger' as of July 2024, despite uneven municipal food security governance.
Key details
In 2024, nearly 49% of Brazilian municipalities reported lacking dedicated organizational structures for food security policies, underscoring significant gaps in combating hunger locally, according to a comprehensive survey by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE). The survey, which gathered data from 5,547 municipalities across 26 federative units, revealed notable disparities tied to municipality size and region.
While only 7.1% of municipalities have formal municipal plans to fight hunger, about 51% reported active councils dedicated to food security, an increase from 36.6% in 2018, reflecting gradual progress. These councils serve as collaborative platforms involving civil society and government to address food insecurity. Despite these efforts, over 60% of municipalities still lack specific food security legislation.
Regionally, municipalities in the poorer North and Northeast exhibited higher prevalence of food security structures, with 57.9% and 64.8% coverage respectively, compared to just 42.2% in the South, 49.3% in the Southeast, and 27.3% in the Central-West. Larger municipalities—those with populations over 500,000—have notably better infrastructure, with 91.7% reporting organizational bodies for food security.
The survey also highlighted practical actions: 71.9% of municipalities engage in initiatives like distributing food baskets and providing monetary benefits to improve access. Moreover, 16 states and 1,694 municipalities have taken steps to regulate food access and commercialization, including school food programs. Additionally, 22 states and 4,303 municipalities source products from family farming through the National School Feeding Program (PNAE). Popular restaurants and community kitchens, though limited, offer additional support.
IBGE research manager Vania Maria Pacheco emphasized the importance of both structural presence and active councils in effectively addressing hunger. Notably, since July 2024 Brazil exited the United Nations' "Map of Hunger," signaling national improvements despite persistent municipal-level challenges.
Overall, the data illustrates critical structural and policy deficits in local food security governance but also points to encouraging progress in public engagement and practical actions across Brazil. Continued focus on expanding legal frameworks and organizational capacity at the municipal level remains essential to sustain and amplify hunger reduction efforts nationwide.