Abigail Stephen from the School of Medicine, Medical Sciences and Nutrition (SMMSN), whose doctoral research explored healthy eating in low income and food insecure adults, considers what food insecurity really means in the UK.
With the most recent Budget bringing the cost of living and household finances into focus, it is important to explore what it is really like to live with food insecurity.
This is often understood as not having enough food to eat. But our research with adults experiencing food insecurity in Aberdeen City highlights a more complex reality. Food insecurity is also about being unable to afford nutritious food, having little choice over what you eat, and living with the stress and stigma that can accompany the struggle to put food on the table.
As policymakers consider the financial pressures facing households, these experiences deserve to be part of the conversation. Having enough calories to get through the day is not the same as having access to a healthy, balanced diet. And being able to buy food does not necessarily mean being able to afford the food you want, need or enjoy.
For the adults who took part in our research, the cost of food shaped almost every decision about what they ate.
Using photography and interviews, we explored how people experiencing food insecurity navigated their everyday food environments. Participants took photographs of food they saw, bought or ate, using these images to guide conversations about their experiences.
What emerged was a picture of people constantly weighing up cost, quantity and nutritional value. Fresh fruit, vegetables and meat were often seen as expensive luxuries rather than everyday essentials. When money was tight, the priority was to buy food that would fill them up and last as long as possible.
One participant reflected on how their shopping habits had changed since experiencing food insecurity:
“Before it would have been every week loads of fresh fruit and veg, meats and nice things, whereas it actually feels like quite a luxury now.”
Another described the difficult choices involved in getting the most food for their money. When faced with the option of a pizza or a yoghurt at a food pantry, they explained why the pizza was the more practical choice: it could provide a filling meal and leave something for the following day.
These decisions are easy to misunderstand if we look at food choices in isolation. People experiencing food insecurity are not necessarily choosing less healthy options because they do not understand nutrition or do not want to eat well. Often, they are making the most practical decision available to them when their resources are limited.
When the priority is making sure there is enough food to last, nutritional value can become secondary to simply avoiding hunger.
One of the most striking findings from our research was that food insecurity affected people who were in employment, including those working full-time.
As one participant explained: “I work full time, and I still struggle and have to look at the cost of everything.”
For some, the problem was not simply the price of individual items but the cumulative pressure of everyday expenses. Food had to compete with other essential costs, while fluctuating prices and unpredictable finances made it difficult to plan meals or shop with confidence.
Participants described relying on discounted food, freezing leftovers, buying products close to their use-by dates and making meals from whatever happened to be available. These strategies helped them manage, but they also restricted their choices.
Our research also highlighted the emotional burden of food insecurity. Participants spoke about shame, embarrassment and isolation. Some felt uncomfortable accessing food support or looking through supermarket discount sections. Others described feeling that the meals they could afford were not good enough to serve to friends or family.Parents can face particular pressures: worrying about whether there is enough food for their children, whether it is nutritious, and whether their children will eat it. Trying to meet these needs on a tight budget can make mealtimes a source of stress
These experiences remind us that food is about much more than nutrition. Preparing and sharing meals can be an important part of family life, relationships, celebrations and our sense of belonging.
The environments in which people live and shop is also an important factor. Participants described neighbourhoods where convenience stores and takeaways were plentiful, but affordable, nutritious food was harder to find.
All of this demonstrates that addressing food insecurity requires us to look at the conditions that shape people's choices, rather than judging those choices in isolation.
The recent budget is an important reminder that the impact of economic pressures cannot be measured by household income or the cost of a shopping basket alone.
Food insecurity is not simply about having enough food to eat. It is about whether people can access nutritious food, have meaningful choices over what they eat, and do so with dignity.
