Hunger on the rise in WA

One in three Western Australian households are skipping meals or compromising food choices amid the cost-of-living crisis, according to Foodbank Australia’s latest report.

The Foodbank Hunger Report 2023 found 388,000 households in WA were facing food insecurity, an increase of 80,000 in the past 12 months.

Of these households struggling to put food on the table, 120,000 were families with children.

The participants involved in Foodbank Australia’s annual hunger report said cost of living was the primary reason for food insecurity.

Foodbank WA chief executive Kate O'Hara said the latest hunger report should be a wake-up call for industry and community to do more.

“This data just reinforces what the Foodbank is seeing every single day: kids are going hungry because families are struggling to put food on the table due to cost-of-living pressures,” she said.

“We have seen a twenty-eight per cent increase in demand for our services in the last quarter compared to the same period last year.

“The rising number of people requiring support is deeply concerning in a country with an abundance of resource, yet Western Australians are under increasing levels of pressure to make ends meet.”

Ms O'Hara said the results were appalling and having real impact on families and children.

“Hunger is unseen and can be easily ignored by those who don’t experience it, but we cannot ignore it any longer,” she said.

During the past 12 months, 36 per cent of households across Australia had experienced moderate to severe food insecurity, while 23 per cent of households were actively going hungry.

The Foodbank Hunger Report found 48 per cent of Australians were reducing the purchase of fresh produce and protein due to rising costs.