Hunger in San Diego: Closer Than You Think

By Casey Castillo, CEO, San Diego Food Bank

August 26, 2025 (San Diego) - When people think of hunger, they often imagine faraway places or extreme poverty. But hunger is a very real issue right here in San Diego County. It’s in our neighborhoods, schools, and workplaces affecting families, seniors, military households, and children in every ZIP code.

This September, during Hunger Awareness Month, the San Diego Food Bank urges our community to look closer and recognize the hidden faces of hunger.

Hunger Wears Many Faces

Food insecurity doesn’t always look like what we expect. It’s not just about homelessness or unemployment. It’s the working parent juggling multiple jobs, the senior choosing between groceries and medication, the military family stretched by rising costs, and the child who goes to bed without dinner.

These are the faces of hunger and they live among us.

Working Families: The “Missing Middle”

Many working families earn too much to qualify for government assistance but not enough to afford basic needs. Rising rent, gas prices, and childcare costs stretch budgets thin, forcing difficult choices between food, fuel, and housing.

The Food Bank serves thousands of these families each month, offering fresh produce, pantry staples, and dignity. Hunger doesn’t discriminate. It can affect anyone, even those working hard to stay afloat.

Seniors: Choosing Between Food and Medicine

Older adults on fixed incomes often face impossible decisions. After paying for rent, utilities, and prescriptions, there’s little left for food. Many seniors quietly skip meals to make ends meet.

The Food Bank’s Senior Food Program delivers monthly boxes of nutritious staples to more than 15,000 seniors, helping them maintain health, independence, and dignity.

Military Families: Serving Our Country, Struggling at Home

San Diego is home to one of the largest concentrations of active-duty military personnel in the U.S. Yet many military families face food insecurity due to extremely high living costs in our region. Frequent relocations and long deployments add to the strain.

The Food Bank partners with military support organizations to ensure these families have access to food and essential resources. Those who serve our country shouldn’t have to struggle to feed their families.

Children: Hunger’s Youngest Victims

In San Diego County, nearly 1 in 3 children face food insecurity. Hunger affects a child’s ability to learn, grow, and thrive. Without enough to eat, kids struggle in school and face long-term health challenges.

The Food Bank’s Food 4 Kids Backpack Program provides weekend food packs to 3,700 children at nearly 100 schools, offering nutrition and hope when school meals aren’t available.

How You Can Help

Last year, the San Diego Food Bank served more than 400,000 people monthly and distributed over 52 million pounds of food. The need remains significant.

This Hunger Awareness Month, you can support hunger-relief efforts in several ways:

• Share: Spread awareness and challenge misconceptions.
• Volunteer: Help sort, pack, and distribute food.
• Connect: Follow us on social media and amplify the message of hunger relief.
• Advocate: Support policies that fight hunger.
• Donate: Every dollar provides two meals.

Food insecurity is a local issue — and so is the opportunity to help.

Visit SanDiegoFoodBank.org to learn more, get involved, and be part of the solution.

Casey Castillo is the CEO of the San Diego Food Bank, the leading organization dedicated to combating food insecurity across San Diego County. He resides in the Del Cerro neighborhood of San Diego.