• Comparing the estimated cost of Public Health England’s (PHE)
‘Eatwell Guide’ with household income, shows that the bottom 20%
of families would have to spend 42% of their after-housing income
on food to eat the Government’s recommended diet.
• This is nearly four times what the richest 20% of UK families
would need to spend on food to meet PHE’s Eatwell Guide
• 3.7 million children in the UK are living in these households,
earning less than £15,860, and are likely to be unable to afford
a healthy diet as defined by the Government.
• 14.4 million households (half of all households in the UK)
currently don’t spend enough to meet the cost of Government’s
recommended Eat Well Guide.
• Widening inequality is leading to higher rates of childhood
obesity in deprived areas with 26% of children in Year 6 being
obese compared to 11% in England’s richest communities.
• Findings strengthen calls for a national measurement of food
insecurity and the need for further investigation into children’s
access to healthy food in the UK (led by the Children’s Future
Food Inquiry)
New analysis "Affordability of the Eatwell Guide" from
independent think tank the The Food Foundation finds that around
3.7 million children in the UK are part of families who earn less
than £15,860 and would have to spend 42% of their after-housing
income on food to meet the costs of the Government’s nutrition
guidelines, making a healthy diet most likely unaffordable.
Comparing the estimated cost of the PHE Eatwell Guide (PHE’s
official guidance on what constitutes a healthy diet and which is
based on the latest scientific evidence) to household income in
England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales shows that the
poorest half of households would need to spend nearly 30% of
their after-housing income on food to eat the Government’s
recommended diet, compared with 12% for the richest half of
households.
This analysis comes as children in the UK return to school amid
growing concerns over holiday hunger. The availability of free
school meals during term-time will be a relief for parents who
struggled to feed their children over the holidays.
The unaffordability of a healthy diet for low-income households
is highlighted by higher rates of childhood obesity in deprived
areas of the country. Over a quarter (26%) of Year Six children
in the most deprived areas of England are obese, but obesity
affects just 11% in England’s richest communities – and the gap
is growing.
The Food Foundation’s food affordability research comes as the
Children's Future Food Inquiry is gathering evidence from those
who have witnessed or experienced children’s food insecurity in
the UK. With an estimated 3.7 million children living in
households that likely cannot afford a healthy diet and record
levels of childhood obesity, the parliamentary inquiry is joining
calls for a national measurement for food insecurity and next
year will present recommendations to policy makers for
understanding and tackling children’s food insecurity and its
consequences in the UK.
CASE STUDY - Elaine from Thanet
Elaine is a mother of 4 kids who all still live at home. Her
husband had to quit work due to ill health and they have recently
had their benefits cut by £95 per week. She struggles to balance
the weekly budget and estimates she has between £50-60 per week
to spend on food. She often finds that its the least healthy
options that are available within her budget.
“I really try and my kids eat well. But what we are eating is not
how I would really like them to eat”
She will be looking for work in September when her youngest child
goes back to school but is worried about finding something that
will fit around school hours. Currently all her kids receive free
school meals and she is concerned that working could also affect
that.
“I would never let my children go without, but I do go without. I
have no social life unless it is something free. Can’t afford to
go out for a coffee”.
MP, Chair of the Children’s
Future Food Inquiry committee said:
“It has always been a great concern to me that so many children
and families in the UK are at risk of going hungry, or going
without a healthy meal each day. That is why I have campaigned
for many years to change this, and why I am proud to Chair the
Children’s Future Food Inquiry committee, which is looking into
this incredibly important issue.
“It cannot be right that 50% of households in the UK currently
have insufficient food budgets to meet the Government’s
recommended Eatwell Guide. A healthy diet, which we know is
important for our health and development, should not be
unaffordable to so many people.
“I hope that the Government will look into this issue as a matter
of urgency, in order to make eating a healthy diet more
affordable.”
Anna Taylor, Executive Director of the Food Foundation, said:
“The Government's measurement of household income highlights the
fact that millions of families in the UK cannot afford to eat in
line with the Government's own dietary guidance. It's crucial
that a coordinated cross-government effort develops policy that
accounts for the cost of its recommended diet, and creates a food
system that does not consign those on lower incomes to the risk
of diet-related illness.”
