Dire Food Bank Hunger Report on cost of living crisis

Over 2 million households in Australia are currently experiencing severe food insecurity, the 2024 Food Bank Hunger Report reveals.

This means they are skipping meals, or going entire days without eating.

Food Bank’s survey results showed 79% of these households did not have the money to buy more food when they ran out.

This is despite families buying cheaper, less nutritious foods, to try and bring down their costs at the checkout.

In the meantime, the supermarket duopoly continue to rake in profits and callously inflate prices on foods that are healthy, nutritious and essential.

Foods like dairy products, protein and fresh produce are essential to a healthy diet, but many Victorians are going without them to be able to afford to put any food on the table at all.

Aside from healthy food, many Victorians are also going without cleaning and personal care products or are having to dip into household savings or move to lower cost homes to be able to afford food for their families.

Though the cost of living has been continuously rising, both wages and government support payments have been failing to keep pace.

This traps low-income households, who are already some of the most vulnerable people in our community, in a cycle of deprivation.

Low-income households always suffer first, worst and for the longest when crises hit our country.

Whether these crises are environmental, social or economic.

We need to take urgent action to make sure that no Australian’s are left behind.

The Labor Government urgently needs to regulate the price of essential groceries and take all measures possible to curb the cost-of-living crisis and its effect on Victoria’s most vulnerable people.

You can read more about The Greens policies to regulate the supermarket duopoly and end price gouging and this cost of living crisis here.