Global Report on Food Crises 2026: Acute Hunger Doubles Over Decade, Two Famines Declared

© European Union, 2025 (photographer: Harandane Dicko)

Acute food insecurity and malnutrition levels remain alarmingly high and deeply entrenched, with crises increasingly concentrated in a core group of countries, according to the Global Report on Food Crises (GRFC) 2026, released today by an international alliance.  In its 10th edition, the GRFC shows that acute hunger has doubled over the past decade, with 2 famines declared last year for the 1st time in the report’s history.

The report from the Global Network Against Food Crises reveals that acute food insecurity remains highly concentrated. 10 countries — Afghanistan, Bangladesh, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Myanmar, Nigeria, Pakistan, South Sudan, Sudan, Syrian Arab Republic, and Yemen — accounted for 2/3s of all people facing high levels of acute hunger. Afghanistan, South Sudan, Sudan, and Yemen experienced the largest food crises both in terms of the share and absolute number of people facing high levels of acute food insecurity.

At the most extreme end, famine was identified in Gaza and parts of Sudan in 2025 by the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) system. This marks the 1st time since the GRFC began reporting that famine has been confirmed in 2 separate contexts in the same year. This signals a sharp escalation in the most extreme forms of hunger and malnutrition, driven primarily by conflict and restricted humanitarian access, and exacerbated by forced displacement.

In total, 266 million people in 47 countries/territories experienced high levels of acute food insecurity in 2025, representing almost 23% of the analysed population – a proportion that is marginally higher than in 2024 and nearly double the share recorded in 2016. In 2025, the severity of acute food insecurity was the 2nd highest on record, with the share of people facing extreme hunger remaining at one of the most critical levels seen in the past 2 decades. The number of people facing catastrophic hunger (IPC Phase 5) is 9 times higher than it was in 2016.

At the same time, acute malnutrition remains a critical and growing concern. In 2025 alone, 35.5 million children were acutely malnourished, including nearly 10 million suffering from severe acute malnutrition. Nearly half of food-crisis contexts also faced nutrition crises, reflecting the combined effects of inadequate diets, disease burden, and breakdowns in essential services. In the most severe contexts, including Gaza, Myanmar, South Sudan and Sudan, these compounded shocks have resulted in extreme levels of malnutrition and elevated risks of mortality.

In addition, forced displacement continued to exacerbate food insecurity. More than 85 million people were forcibly displaced across food-crisis contexts in 2025, including internally displaced people, asylum-seekers and refugees with people forced to flee consistently facing higher levels of acute hunger than host communities.

‘Conflict remains the primary driver of acute food insecurity and malnutrition for millions around the world, with outright famine emerging in two conflict-affected areas in the same year — an unprecedented development,’ said United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres in the foreword to the report. ‘This report is a call to action urging global leaders to summon the political will to rapidly scale up investment in lifesaving aid, and work to end the conflicts that inflict so much suffering on so many.’

Commissioner for Equality, Preparedness, and Crisis Management, Hadja Lahbib said :

‘ The Global Report on Food Crises is multilateral cooperation at its best. For ten years, it has brought humanitarian and development partners together around one shared, trusted analysis of global hunger. A common reference we can all rely on. And what it shows is clear: hunger is getting worse. This report helps us track the trends, compare across crises, and understand where the needs are greatest. Most importantly, it is an early warning and a call to act. The European Union remains firmly committed to fighting food insecurity as a reliable and principled humanitarian donor. We will continue to use this report as our compass to navigate rising hunger in a more complex world.’

Background

The Global Report on Food Crises (GRFC) is published  annually by the Global Network Against Food Crises (GNAFC).

The Global Network Against Food Crises (GNAFC) is an international alliance of the United Nations; the European Union; governmental and non-governmental agencies working together to address food crises with evidence-based actions proven to deliver impact.

Details

Publication date 24 April 2026 Author Directorate-General for European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (ECHO)
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