The Murrumbidgee Shire council area has the second highest percentage of residents who are overweight or obese in the nation, ranking behind the Katherine area in the Northern Territory.

According to new research from the Mitchell Institute at Victoria University, 77.3 per cent of the Murrumbidgee Shire adult population are considered to be overweight or obese.

Professor of health policy at the Mitchell Institute Rosemary Calder said environmental factors play a key part in obesity rates.

"We have spent too long as a nation expecting individuals to be able to change their behaviour to reduce their weight," she said.

"However, the evidence is very clear that this has little chance of success without a very strong focus on the environmental factors in the places where we live that contribute to poor nutrition and inactivity.

"People in our wealthier suburbs tend to have better access to information about healthy diet and the financial means to access healthy food options and enjoyable physical activity."

The area was home to 1,330 overweight or obese adults during the 2014/15 financial year, with the area more than nine percentage points above the state average.

However, the figures do not include members of the Jerilderie area, as the data comes from before the merging of the Jerilderie and Murrumbidgee councils.

Professor Calder said areas with high rates of obesity are also largely low-socioeconomic communities and also have higher rates of inactivity, chronic illness and smoking.

She said action is needed at all levels of government to help reduce the rate of obesity in the country.

"It is vitally important that governments at all levels focus on collectively addressing the impact of where we live on our health," she said.

"Local governments are critical to local planning and the creation of healthy and active spaces for their residents.

"However, they are often hampered by lack of funding and regulatory power."

The statistics indicate 77.2 per cent of Carrathool residents are overweight or obese, with that number decreasing to 74.1 per cent in Leeton, 73.9 per cent in Hay and 71.5 per cent in Griffith.

According to statistics from the 2017/18 Australian Health Survey, 67 per cent of all adult Australians are overweight or obese, an increase from 61.1 per cent in 2007/08.