UCLA-provided data reveals need to expand food assistance in California

Approximately 45% of noncitizens without legal permanent resident status experience food insecurity, according to the report.

The report also breaks down percentages of people experiencing food insecurity by age group, with 42% of noncitizens without legal permanent resident status age 50 and older, 46% of those 27 to 49 years old, 36% of those 18 to 26 years old and 64% of children under 17 being affected.

Susan Babey, a senior research scientist at the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research, said while it is important to address food insecurity, it is also important to remember that a lack of nutritious food is linked to other physical and mental health outcomes, especially developmentally for children.

The starkest finding from the brief is that 60% of noncitizen children without legal permanent resident status are experiencing food insecurity, she said. She added that children typically have the highest rates of food insecurity and poverty in all populations, not just among noncitizens without legal permanent resident status.