Improving Food Security and Sovereignty in Indian Country

MAZON has prioritized unique strategies, partnerships, and policies aimed at reclaiming and achieving food security and food sovereignty in Indian Country. We are proud to work closely with Tribal partners — organizations and leaders acting from a place of incredible power, vision, and resilience, despite centuries of marginalization, erasure, and disinvestment in their communities. We are committed to advancing food policies that support the self-determination and wellness of Tribes and Native communities.

By the numbers:

Nearly 25%

of all Native American and Alaska Native households are food-insecure.

Obesity and diabetes

Rates of obesity and diabetes in Indian Country are nearly twice that of the rest of the U.S. population.

Twice as likely to be food insecure

Native Americans and Alaska Natives are twice as likely as white people to be food insecure.

90,000

The Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations (FDPIR) serves 90,000 participants per month on average in Indian Country.

42% of FDPIR households

include people over age 60.

1/3 of FDPIR households

have children under the age of 18.

This is Hunger
Stories
Read more stories

Food is so expensive on the reservation, and our food stamps only last about two weeks. When they run out, I go out and sell beadwork really cheap, just so I can continue to feed my family.

Dorothy, South Dakota
Take Action

Urge Congress to Support the Tribal Nutrition Improvement Act

One of the most meaningful ways to support food security and sovereignty in Indian Country is to allow Tribes to directly administer federal nutrition programs.

Take action now
Learn more

Strengthening Tribal Food Sovereignty to Honor Indigenous Peoples

Each year, Indigenous Peoples' Day is an opportunity to recognize and celebrate Native peoples, to acknowledge the legacy of settler colonialism, and to commit to accountability for its impacts in the present. Read more.

Devastation & Resilience in Indian Country

Families living in Indigenous communities are twice as likely to experience food insecurity, even before the pandemic. Read more.

The U.S. Government’s Failed COVID-19 Response Echoes Historic Mistreatment of Native Americans

The U.S. government’s failed response to the COVID-19 pandemic has had devastating impacts across the country, but perhaps nowhere more than in Indian Country, where the neglect echoes historic mistreatment of Native Americans, experts said in a recent panel event hosted by MAZON. The panel, which coincided with Native American Heritage Month, featured experts in this field and addressed various ways to strengthen food security and food sovereignty in Indian Country. Read more.

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