The number of starving Americans has risen rapidly since 2000, with children and old people suffering more than ever.
The U.S. government says there are now 38 million hungry Americans, 5 million more than just a few years ago.
America's Second Harvest, a nationwide network of soup kitchens, now gives food to 25 million hungry people -- an 8% increase in just five years.
And one-third of those needing the soup kitchens are in households with at least one working adult.
"Even though individuals may have a job, they still are having a hard time making ends meet," Second Harvest's Maura Daly told the Christian Science Monitor.
"We find many people have to make choices between food and other basic necessities like paying for utilities and heat."
With income not keeping up with living expenses for so many Americans, going to the soup kitchen for some meals is the only way to keep on top of their mounting bills for housing, utilities and health care.
Some 30% of hungry people in the United States have been forced to choose between eating and getting urgent medical treatment.
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