Undernourishment in Latin America and the Caribbean declined for the fourth consecutive year, but rising food costs, persistent gender gaps, and increasing obesity continue to challenge food security. For Mexico, where healthy diets remain significantly more expensive than ultra-processed alternatives, this dynamic affects consumer spending patterns, agribusiness competitiveness and public health expenditures.
Hunger in Latin America and the Caribbean declined for the fourth consecutive year, signaling steady progress in the region’s fight against food insecurity. However, malnutrition and obesity rates remain high, and the rising cost of food continues to be a major barrier to accessing healthy diets.
According to the Regional Overview of Food Security and Nutrition 2025: Statistics and Trends, developed jointly by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO), the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), and the World Food Programme (WFP), undernourishment affected 5.1% of the population in 2024, down from a peak of 6.1% in 2020. This means that 6.2 million people in the region are no longer experiencing hunger.
National estimates for 2022–2024 show that undernourishment prevalence was below 2.5% in Brazil, Costa Rica, Guyana, and Uruguay. Chile and Mexico approached this threshold, with estimated prevalences of 2.5% and 2.7%, respectively. Argentina, Barbados, Colombia, Dominica and the Dominican Republic also recorded levels below 5%. However, the report highlights significant disparities across countries. In Haiti, undernourishment reached an estimated 54.2%, the highest rate in Latin America, while Bolivia, Honduras, and Ecuador reported levels of 21.8%, 14.8% and 12.1%, respectively.
Moderate or severe food insecurity affected 25.2% of the region’s population in 2024. Although this figure is below the global estimate of 28% and has steadily declined from its 2020 peak of 33.7%, gender disparities remain pronounced. In 2024, women experienced higher levels of moderate or severe food insecurity than men across all subregions. The gender gap stood at 5.3%, ranging from 6.5% in Mesoamerica to 3.7% in the Caribbean, considerably higher than the global average gap of 1.9%. While still the widest of any region, the gap has narrowed from 9.1% in 2021. In cases of severe food insecurity, the regional gender gap was estimated at 1.3% in 2024, slightly above the global estimate of 0.8%.
The report also underscores the affordability of healthy diets. An estimated 181.9 million people in the region cannot afford a healthy diet, while 141 million adults live with obesity. Anemia affected 19.9% of women aged 15–49 in 2023. Although this remains below the global estimate of 30.7%, anemia rates in the region have been rising steadily since 2014. Among children under five, stunting prevalence stood at 12.4%, consistently below the global average over the past 25 years. Wasting was estimated at 1.3% in 2024. Meanwhile, overweight among children under five has increased steadily since 2000, reaching 8.8% in 2024, above the global estimate, placing the region off track to meet the 2030 target of reducing and maintaining this prevalence below 3%.
High food costs largely explain these trends. In 2024, the cost of a healthy diet in Latin America and the Caribbean rose by 3.8%, making it the most expensive region in the world, at an estimated US$5.1 per person per day adjusted for purchasing power parity. “Latin America and the Caribbean still faces the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, supply disruptions and geopolitical conflicts that have intensified food price inflation, raising the cost of a healthy diet both globally and regionally,” the report states.
Jarbas Barbosa, Director, PAHO, emphasized that unhealthy food environments, characterized by the widespread availability of ultra-processed products and limited access to nutritious options, continue to drive high rates of overweight and obesity across the Americas. Roberto Benes, Regional Director, UNICEF for Latin America and the Caribbean, stressed that tackling malnutrition in all its forms requires strengthened health, nutrition, education and social protection systems to ensure universal access to affordable, diverse and nutritious food.
What Is the Cost of a Healthy Diet in Mexico?
According to December 2025 records from PROFECO, the cost of the basic food basket ranged between MX$800 and MX$900 (US$46.1 – US$51.9) per week, depending on the region and retailer. When complemented with fresh fruits, a variety of vegetables and sufficient protein to cover a full week, spending increases by an additional MX$200 to MX$400 per person. As a result, the real cost of eating a balanced diet at home for one week is approximately MX$1,000 to MX$1,300, assuming three meals per day and adequate portions for an average adult.
By contrast, a diet based on ultra-processed foods can be up to three times cheaper. With MX$50, it is possible to purchase cookies, instant noodles and a soft drink, whereas a complete meal, including rice, a home-cooked dish and water, costs more than double that amount. Nutritionist Fátima García notes that economic constraints are a major factor limiting access to quality food. However, she emphasizes that practical strategies can help households maintain healthy diets at affordable prices. For example, while red meat and fish are often perceived as essential protein sources, dietary guidelines suggest legumes as a more affordable and equally nutritious alternative. Planning meals in advance can also help families control costs and reduce reliance on industrialized products, which often lead to higher spending and poorer nutrition outcomes.
Eliminating Hunger is Fiscally Feasible, Says IICA–IMF Study
A study presented by the Inter-American Institute on Agriculture Cooperation (IICA) in partnership with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) concludes that eliminating hunger in Latin America and the Caribbean is achievable at a relatively low fiscal cost for most countries. The report, titled How Much Would It Cost to End Hunger in Latin America and the Caribbean?, estimates that nearly three-quarters of countries could eradicate hunger with an additional cost of less than 0.25% of GDP, based on the international extreme poverty line of US$3/d per person. One proposed financing mechanism is the reallocation of regressive subsidies, such as fossil fuel subsidies, which represented 0.7% of regional GDP in 2024.
Experts argue that the required fiscal effort would be comparable to existing social programs and could generate additional benefits, including increased consumption of local foods and stronger agricultural productivity. Manuel Otero, Director General, IICA, emphasized that although the region produces a surplus of food, achieving food security requires political will, interinstitutional coordination, particularly between ministries of Agriculture and Finance, and a new generation of public policies capable of demonstrating that hunger can be eradicated at a manageable cost.