MORE than one-quarter of UK adults have skipped meals, gone without food to feed their family or relied on relatives or friends to provide over the past year, according to a survey.
Some 40% of UK households said their situation had worsened over the past 12 months while 28% had struggled to buy the same amount of healthy and nutritious food that they did 12 months ago, the poll for Tesco, foodbank charity The Trussell Trust and food redistribution charity FareShare found. More than one-quarter (27%) found it harder to feed their families over the past year, 20% had skipped a meal as a result of not being able to afford food and 30% said they had either skipped meals, gone without or relied on family or friends to provide food. More than one-third (37%) of UK households said they would resist turning the heating on to ensure that food is readily available, the survey of 4000 people suggested.
Among those who have experienced food poverty, 60% said they would go without heating to provide food.
FareShare chief executive Lindsay Boswell said: "This shocking research confirms what we're seeing on the ground: people across the country are finding it incredibly tough.
"Support for this collection is vital in ensuring we can provide our charities with even more food just in time for Christmas."
Chris Mould, the chief executive of The Trussell Trust, said: "Some 60,000 people are likely to receive emergency food from Trussell Trust foodbanks in the two weeks over Christmas.
"We're already meeting parents who are choosing between eating and heating, and rising fuel prices mean this winter is looking bleak for people on the breadline."
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