About 3.5 million more American families went hungry after food prices spiked and the pandemic-era child tax credit ended

• 3.5 million more US households were food insecure in 2022, a recent report showed.
• Elevated food prices could be one reason, said Chloe East, a visiting fellow at the Hamilton Project at Brookings.
• There was also an increase in food insecurity for households with children from 2021 to 2022.

About 3.5 million more US households were food insecure for at least part of 2022 than in 2021. The increase is the biggest uptick since the 2008 financial crisis.

That's according to a new US Department of Agriculture report. Food insecurity is when the "ability to acquire adequate food is limited by a lack of money and other resources," per the report.