Switzerland: Prevalence of moderate or severe food insecurity in the population (%)

Key figures

Over five years it is up 0.6 percentage points from 2% in 2019. Since 2015 it is down 2.2 percentage points from 4.8% in 2015.

What the numbers say

In 2024, Switzerland's prevalence of moderate or severe food insecurity in the population (%) rose 0.6 percentage points on 2023 (from 2% to 2.6%).

Across the 8 yearly changes before that (2016 to 2023), the average change was −0.35 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.49 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 2.0 standard deviations above that average, so it was larger than a typical year, though not out of the range seen before.

On record, the biggest yearly rise was 0.6 percentage points in 2024 and the biggest yearly fall was 1.1 percentage points in 2017. The numbers show how large and when, not why; for the cause, look at what happened in that country in those years.

From 2015 to 2024 the straight-line trend is downward, about 0.24 percentage points a year. A straight line explains 57% of the movement over 10 observed years.

Worked out from the yearly values above. How the checks work: standard deviation, z-scores and straight-line trends.

How it compares

In 2024, Switzerland had the 93rd highest value of the 95 economies reporting that year. Higher is not always better: for some indicators the lowest value is the one to aim for. See the full ranking.

Closest to Switzerland in the 2024 ranking

• Poland — 92nd of 95: 2.7%
• Luxembourg — 93rd of 95: 2.6%
• Russian Federation — 94th of 95: 2.6%

What this measures

The percentage of people in the population who live in households classified as moderately or severely food insecure. A household is classified as moderately or severely food insecure when at least one adult in the household has reported to have been exposed, at times during the year, to low quality diets and might have been forced to also reduce the quantity of food they would normally eat because of a lack of money or other resources.

Regional and income-group figures are computed by the World Bank as a population-weighted average.

All 10 values

Prevalence of moderate or severe food insecurity in the population (%) in nearby economies

• Albania — 31.8% (2024)
• Austria — 4.4% (2024)
• Azerbaijan — 14.6% (2024)
• Bosnia and Herzegovina — 8.7% (2024)
• Bulgaria — 10.5% (2024)
• Croatia — 4.9% (2024)
• Czechia — 9.1% (2024)
• Denmark — 6.2% (2024)
• Estonia

More health data for Switzerland

• Population ages 00-04, female (% of female population) — 4.64% (2025)
• Population ages 00-04, male (% of male population) — 4.94% (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, female — 658,807 (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, female (% of female population) — 14.4% (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, male — 694,461 (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, male (% of male population) — 15.37% (2025)
• Population ages 0-14, total — 1.35 million (2025)
• Population ages 0-14 (% of total population) — 14.88% (2025)
• Population ages 05-09, female (% of female population) — 4.9% (2025)

Reading data like this

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Questions people ask

What is Switzerland's prevalence of moderate or severe food insecurity in the population (%)?

2.6% in 2024, according to the World Bank (World Development Indicators).

How has it changed since 2015?

It is down 2.2 percentage points from 4.8% in 2015. The highest value was 4.8% in 2015 and the lowest 2% in 2019.

How does Switzerland rank?

93rd highest of 95 economies with data for 2024.

Is the latest change in prevalence of moderate or severe food insecurity in the population (%) unusual for Switzerland?

In 2024, Switzerland's prevalence of moderate or severe food insecurity in the population (%) rose 0.6 percentage points on 2023 (from 2% to 2.6%). Across the 8 yearly changes before that (2016 to 2023), the average change was −0.35 percentage points and a typical year strayed about 0.49 percentage points from that (the standard deviation). This year's change was 2.0 standard deviations above that average, so it was larger than a typical year, though not out of the range seen before.

Source

World Bank, World Development Indicators, indicator SN.ITK.MSFI.ZS, licensed CC BY 4.0. Original source: Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) Figures are fetched from the World Bank API and refreshed monthly; see the series on data.worldbank.org. The full definition and method are in the World Bank's metadata glossary. Comparisons use the same World Bank release.

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