Food poverty
Under international law, which the UK government committed to respect, we all have a right to food. The government’s failure to honour this commitment is causing harm to children and their families, impacting also on the right to health and to life.
The impacts of not having this most basic need met are significant and include depression, anxiety, exclusion, poor health and early death. Children’s education, relationships and childhood can be damaged. As a society it hits us hard too. There are outcomes such as higher numbers of days off sick, financial cost to the NHS and other support services, higher costs of welfare and benefits needed. Whole communities are having to put their energies into feeding their neighbours and there is a deep feeling of injustice and neglect.
The right to food is a fundamental one, necessary to the well-being of children and society. The government must honour their legal commitments.
“Wages are so low that a full working day no longer guarantees food on the table. Evidence also shows that hunger has been fuelled by the inadequacy of social security provision and the processes by which it is delivered.”
“The inequalities within, and created by, our food system are stark… People living in the most deprived decile are almost twice as likely to die from all preventable causes, compared to those in the richest decile.”
Henry Dimbleby
National Food Strategy (2021)
“Good food is fundamental to culture; it is a cornerstone of building community; it is about being able to take part in social activities with your friends. These are not added extras; they are central to a good life. Food, ultimately, is about how well humans can thrive.”
Hungry families
It is extraordinary and should be shocking that in one of the richest countries in the world a sizable number of people are regularly having to not eat because they can’t afford food. While parental sacrifice shielded many children from the worst of hunger, the Child Poverty Action Group study found that for a quarter of families they spoke to there was so little that children went without too.
“Hunger during childhood can have a ripple effect that we are only just beginning to understand. The long-term physical and psychological consequences of hunger are serious and have implications for the health of society itself.”
“Food poverty is upsetting children, and nearly a third have shared food with friends because they didn’t have enough.”
“I’m still haunted by the fear of being hungry. Once you’ve lived it it never leaves you.”
Healthy food not affordable
With healthy food three times the cost per calorie as unhealthy foods families are having to choose not being hungry, but children are missing out on the nutrients their growing bodies need, obesity is rising as are negative health impacts. The cost of gas and electricity is a barrier to families being able to eat well and a lack of easy access to fresh food for families can be too. Being homeless inevitably impacts parents’ ability to feed their children with nutritious food as temporary accommodation often provides very poor facilities.
“The poorest fifth of UK households would have to spend 47% of their disposable income on food to meet the cost of the Government-recommended healthy diet.”
“…children in the most deprived areas were approximately twice as likely to be obese.”
House of Commons Library
Obesity Statistics (2023)
Single parent families almost twice as likely to experience food insecurity and despite best efforts less able to shield their children from going hungry.
%
Households with children have experienced food insecurity in last year (Food Foundation)
%
Households in receipt of Universal Credit experienced food insecurity in last year (Food Foundation)
Rights not charity
Rather than charity the right to food must be respected and embedded in public policy.
“We cannot allow the gap between wages, benefits and food costs to continue to grow. We cannot permit food banks to become a substitute for a comprehensive social security system. We cannot allow malnutrition rates to continue to rise. Securing the human right to food must become a national priority.”
“Food banks and food charity cannot ‘solve’ the problem of food poverty and, in fact, may serve to stigmatise and marginalise further those already suffering material deprivation and social exclusion. People should have the right to food, not to be fed.”
In Scotland significant amounts of work have been done around how including this right in their legal system – as well as in international law – would help protect people. Read more here.