Very low food security due to limited economic resources is a serious threat facing millions of children in America. In 2010, about one-in-five children were food insecure insofar as they lived in families without the financial means to access enough food to sustain active, healthy living. Given the existence of food insecurity and its attendant consequences, there is a wide array of government policies geared towards its alleviation. Despite this array of programs, food insecurity rates remain stubbornly high. Indeed the problem of food insecurity has become particularly acute in recent years including an unprecedented increase of over 30% from 2007 to 2010. One key reason that rates remains stubbornly high – and the focus of this panel – is limitations in our understanding of the determinants of food insecurity and the potential ways that food assistance and other programs can help alleviate food insecurity.