Sociodemographic inequalities and the reduction of food insecurity after one year of the COVID-19 pandemic in Southeastern and Southern Brazil —a cross-sectional analysis

Background: Food insecurity is a persistent global issue associated with socioeconomic inequalities, even in more economically developed regions of Brazil, such as the South and Southeast regions. The aim of this study was to assess changes in the association between socioeconomic and demographic factors and household food insecurity in the South and Southeast of Brazil in 2022 and 2023. Method: This cross-sectional study involved data from the Second Survey on Food Insecurity in the Context of the COVID-19 Pandemic (South: n = 1,525; Southeast: n = 2,022 households) and the National Household Sample Survey (South: n = 30,633; Southeast: n = 47,854). Proportions were estimated and multinomial logistic regressions were performed to assess the association between socioeconomic and demographic variables and food insecurity, with relative risk ratios (RRRs) with 95% confidence intervals and a significance level of 5%, in addition to the probabilities of food insecurity (FI) by income ≤ ½ minimum wage, using Stata 16.0 software. Results: Despite the reduction in FI from 2022 to 2023, moderate/severe FI remained associated with lower per capita income (South: RRR = 13.7; 95% CI 10.4–18.2; Southeast: RRR = 10.1; 95% CI 8.5–12.1), informal work (South: RRR = 1.7; 95% CI: 1.4–2.2; Southeast: RRR = 1.5; 95% CI 1.2–1.8), unemployment (South: RRR = 2.4; 95% CI 1.7–3.6; Southeast: RRR = 2.3; 95% CI 1.8–2.8) and Black skin color/race (South: RRR = 1.9; 95% CI 1.3–2.6; Southeast: RRR = 1.7; 95% CI 1.4–2.1) in 2023. Conclusion: The findings emphasize that hunger continues to be associated with socioeconomic inequalities and regional disparities, reinforcing the importance of monitoring FI to better understand the disparities that affect access to food and the urgency of policies that ensure the right to food in an equitable and sustainable way.