What’s being done to reduce food poverty in the UK

Food banks: Emergency food (1)

Provide emergency food parcels to people in crisis. 2024-25: 2.9 million parcels were distributed

(2)

Food banks distribute free parcels to individuals & families who can't afford food due to financial shortfalls, illness, job loss or other crises

Dietary support

Accomodate dietary needs & allergies. Can sometimes arrange for food parcel delivery

Wraparound support services (1)

Feeding britain's pathways from poverty integrate debt advice, welfare support & benefit applications, housing help & employment services directly into food banks & community food projects to improve financial stability

(2)

Co-located within food banks & affordable food clubs - easier for people to access help in familiar, trusted spaces

(3)

Feeding Britain: involved in projects to teach families about cooking, growing produce & reducing food waste to promote self sufficiency & improve eating habits

(4)

Collaborate with local food networks, farms & allotment groups to source fresh produce & establish community growing spaces to provide more nutritious food options

Tackling root causes (1)

Growing need for food banks points to systemic issues eg low wages, precarious work & insufficient welfare support as drivers of food poverty

Focus on preventing future crises by offering:

-budgeting & financial literacy courses

-MH support

-job readiness workshops

-help with benefit applications & appeals

Advocacy & policy change (1)

Raise awareness & advocate for urgent action on hunger by sharing stats & highlighting systemic issues of low income that drive food poverty

Campaign for systemic reforms including:

-reducing the 5 week wait for universal credit through its '5 weeks too long' campaign

-calling for investment in social security to prevent hunger & hardship

Community-based food solutions

Operate social supermarkets, pantries & community cafes offering low cost food in a dignified setting - promotes choice & affordability, helping people avoid stigma of emergency food aid

Data driven insights

Hunger in the UK 2025: highlights that 14.1 million people are food insecure & 1 in 6 households experience food insecurity- help food banks & policymakers target interventions more effectively

Fare share: Redistribute surplus food to combat poverty (1)

2023-2024: redistributed over 130 million meals to nearly 9500 charities & community groups across the UK

(2)

This helped support over 1 million people every week, providing access to nutritious meals that would otherwise have gone to waste

Campaigns to raise awareness & drive change (1)

Run campaigns to address food insecurity eg #ActiveAte - focuses on supporting children during school holidays - when families struggle to provide regular meals due to absence of free school meals

(2)

ActiveAte has helped deliver over 2 million meals to children at risk of hunger

(3)

Campaign partners with local organisations to provide food, safe spaces & activities for children to alleviate hunger & social isolation

Advocating for policy change: feed people first (1)

Food waste in the uk: estimated at 9.5 million tonnes annually with around 2 million tonnes still edible - surplus food is diverted to anaerobic digestion/animal feed due to existing government incentives

(2)

Calling for a level playing field in government policy, urging that incentives be extended to food redistribution efforts

(3)

Cheaper for businesses to dispose of surplus food than to donate it due to logistical & administrative costs

(4)

Advocate for financial support & tax relief for food businesses that choose to donate surplus food, making it economically viable to feed people first

The trussel trust: Nationwide food bank network (1)

Each food parcel typically contains 3 days worth of nutritionally balanced, non-perishable food, tailored to household size

(2)

2023-2024: distributed close to 3 million emergency food parcels, with over 1 million going to children

(3)

Actively involve people who've experienced poverty & food insecurity in shaping their solutions & strategies

Beyond food: tackling the root causes of poverty (1)

Mission extends beyond emergency food provision - many food banks in their network offer wraparound support services to help people move out of crisis & toward long term stability

(2)

Services include budgeting & debt advice, holiday clubs for children, job readiness workshops & signposting to MH & housing support

(3)

Recognises that poverty is complex & provides support beyond just food, including advice on money management, cooking skills & other services through programs like 'more than food'

(4)

Uses data & insights from its food bank network & people with lived experience to inform policy makers & campaign for laws & policies that address root causes of poverty

Campaigning for systemic change (1)

Uses frontline experience & data to advocate for policy reform

(2)

Produces evidence based reports on poverty, food insecurity & welfare system shortcomings

Five weeks too long

Highlights hardship caused by minimum 5 week wait for first universal credit payment - often forces people into debt, rent arrears & food bank reliance

Long term goal

To end the need for food banks by tackling issues like low pay, insecure work, insufficient income & lack of social support systems

(3)

Gathers evidence & data to demonstrate the drivers of food bank use & build a strong case for gov. action

Social enterprise initiatives (1)

Supports social enterprise projects eg community shops & cafes - offer affordable food & household items while reinvesting profits into local poverty alleviation efforts

(2)

Promote dignity & choice, allowing people to access essentials without stigma

(3)

Raise public awareness & foster empathy to encourage a more just & compassionate society

(4)

Profits used to fund food bank operations, community outreach & advocacy work

(5)

Work with local communities, volunteers & partners to reduce local need for food banks