Household Food Security Status of Rural Women in USSA Local Government Area, Taraba State, Nigeria

Addressing global hunger and food insecurity requires immediate and unified efforts due to their broad nature and the potential for significant escalation in certain areas. This study assessed household food security status of women in the Ussa Local Government Area of Taraba State, Nigeria. A multistage sampling technique was used in sampling the respondents. Primary data for the study were obtained through the administration of well structured questionnaires to the respondents. Descriptive statistics such as frequency, mean and percentages; and food security were used to analyze data. The result indicates a mean age of 42.8years and mean household size of seven (7) members. Most (56.3%) of the respondents were married and 51.3% of the respondents engaged in farming as their major occupation and source of livelihood. Majority (81.2%) attained one form of formal education or another. Findings of the study also shows that 65% of respondents were food insecure. The coping strategies mostly adopted to manage food insecurity by these women were storage of excess foodstuff, taking up additional income generating activities and management of available foods. It was therefore recommended that women should diversify their source of income.