More than 870,000 Australian families with incomes less than $30,000 face food insecurity Australia the time.
That number is up 5% from 2022, according to a report released by Foodbank Australia, Australia’s largest hunger relief charity.
Single-parent families are most affected
THE single parent families are the most affected, with 2/3 or more of them facing food shortages, according to this source. Almost one million families in Australia They struggle to ensure adequate amounts of food, with parents skipping meals or not eating for days to protect their children from hunger.
“We warned at the start of the cost of living crisis that low-income families would suffer first, worst and longest and these findings bear that out,” Foodbank Australia chief executive Brianna Casey said in a statement.
“We see families who are just surviving, reaching their limits and making incredible choices.”
They are leading to cuts in essential items
People are being forced to cut back on staple foods due to the combined impact of higher costs on housing, energy and consumer goods, although the situation in some households shows signs of improving, the report says.
Families in Australia continue to fight inflation and higher housing costs following a surge in immigration after Covid-19 border regulations expired in 2022, putting further pressure on an already tight rental market.
Although headline inflation continued to decline and eased to 2.7% in August, helped mainly by government discounts, the Reserve Bank of Australia said the measure was volatile.
The report states that more families seek help from food aid charities, because relatives and friends can no longer help them.
More than 50% of low-income families seek support more frequently than a year ago, while the proportion of those receiving help from friends and extended family fell to 25% in 2024, down from 32% in 2023.
Sources: AMPE, Reuters