Food insecurity data that’s hyper-local, built into every rescue, and only on Food Rescue Hero.
INTRODUCING THE COMMUNITY NEED INDEX
See the need in every corner of your community
Every rescue decision is a hyper-local one
Every day, food goes to waste, and every day, people in your community don’t know if they’ll have enough to eat. You’re tasked with bridging that gap, and until now, knowing where the need is greatest has meant experience and institutional knowledge filling in what the data couldn’t show.
Need concentrates in specific places, whether a city neighborhood or a stretch of rural county. Now you can see exactly where. With the Community Need Index, that information is in the Food Rescue Hero platform: data-backed, hyper-local, and built into every rescue.
HOW THE COMMUNITY NEED INDEX WORKS
One score for every community in your service area
The Community Need Index assigns every U.S. census tract a score from 4 to 44 reflecting the level of food insecurity-related need. Higher scores mean greater need.
SOURCE 1
SNAP participation rate
SOURCE 2
Type II diabetes rate
SOURCE 3
Disability status rate
SOURCE 4
Localized median income
SOURCE 5
USDA’s Food Access Research
These combine to produce a single score for every community you serve, shown relative to your service area so you can see at a glance where need is greatest.
Built into the moments where you decide
The Community Need Index isn’t a separate report. It’s woven into the platform at your decision points. When you’re choosing where food goes, the need is right there on the screen.
Donor and nonprofit partner maps
Community Need Index scores shade every map view.
Suggested Nonprofits window
Need scores appear during rescue creation.
WHY NOW
The national picture of hunger is going dark. Your local one doesn’t have to.
For 30 years, the USDA’s Household Food Security Report tracked hunger nationwide. It was discontinued in 2025, with no national replacement. The data showing where hunger lives is no longer publicly available, so we built it into our platform.
From believing your work is equitable to knowing it is
Most food rescue organizations have equity written into their mission. The Community Need Index gives you the tool to act on it, and to show your community, your board, and your funders exactly where your work is going.
See the Community Need Index for yourself
Schedule a no-pressure demo with Sedona, and we’ll show you the need in your own service area, on your own map.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Community Need Index?
The Community Need Index is a Food Rescue Hero feature that assigns every U.S. census tract a score from 4 to 44 reflecting the level of food insecurity-related need. Higher scores mean greater need. It’s built into the platform on your donor and nonprofit partner maps and in the Suggested Nonprofits window during rescue creation.
How is the Community Need Index calculated?
The Community Need Index combines data from five sources: SNAP participation rate, Type II diabetes rate, disability status rate, localized median income, and USDA’s Food Access Research Atlas. These combine to produce a single, comparable score for every community you serve.
What if we already know where the need is in our community?
Institutional knowledge walks out the door with staff turnover. The Community Need Index makes need visible across your whole service area for everyone on your team, including your newest dispatcher.
Is the Community Need Index reliable now that the USDA has discontinued its food security report?
Yes. What the USDA discontinued in 2025 is its national survey report, the Household Food Security Report. The Community Need Index’s five underlying data sources are separate and remain active in the platform. In-platform access matters more now that the national picture is no longer publicly available.
Does the Community Need Index work in rural areas?
The Community Need Index scores every U.S. census tract, so it covers every service area, whether the need concentrates in a city neighborhood or spreads across a stretch of rural county.
