Four in ten adults in Puerto Rico face some degree of food insecurity, according to the Food Security in Puerto Rico Report 2026, released on Wednesday by Espacios Abiertos, Nutriendo Puerto Rico and Fundación Triple-S. The study found that 40.8% of adults are food insecure: 30.5% in the low food security category and 10.3% in the very low food security category. In addition, 51.9% of respondents reported some difficulty obtaining and regularly consuming nutritious food, and 91.7% of them cited the high cost of healthy food as one of the main barriers.
"In Puerto Rico, the challenge is no longer just having access to food; it is being able to consistently access nutritious food that allows people to live and stay healthy," said Ángela Díaz, executive director of Nutriendo PR. Prevalence reaches 63.9% among adults with household incomes of up to $14,999 a year, compared with 5.1% among those earning $50,000 or more.
By health region, Ponce had the highest prevalence at 67.1%, followed by Fajardo (45.3%), Metro (42.7%) and Bayamón (40%). The report is based on 1,416 in-person interviews across Puerto Rico’s seven health regions, with a 95% confidence level and a margin of error of ±2.6 percentage points. The organizations recommended strengthening local food production and distribution, improving nutrition assistance systems and establishing an inter-agency strategy to address food insecurity, particularly among the most vulnerable populations.
Corrected October 8: an earlier version of a key point said 91.7% of respondents cited the high cost of healthy food. In the report, as Telemundo PR described it, the 91.7% is of the 51.9% of respondents who said they had difficulty getting nutritious food.