SCOTLAND'S poorest people are facing food shortages similar to Second World War rationing due to soaring prices, a charity has claimed.
Oxfam Scotland said pensioners and those on low incomes are struggling to feed themselves -- with many Scots parents skipping meals to ensure their families are properly fed.
The charity said food prices have been rising at more than twice the rate of the national minimum wage and at nearly twice the rate of the jobseeker’s allowance over the past five years.
A poll of people on below-average incomes, conducted on behalf of the charity, suggests that, as a result, people are buying lower-quality food and changing how and where they shop.
Danny McCafferty, from Clydebank Independent Resource Centre, near Glasgow, which helps unemployed people and those on low incomes, has seen a steady rise in those seeking help.
He said: “We’re seeing a growing number of people using the centre to access support to deal with these issues.
“But one group who are particularly badly affected are pensioners. They’re forced to continually hunt for the best deal on whatever food they want to buy, and they can tell you the price of everything.
“They search between shops for the best deal because they have no other option. Five pence or 10p really counts.
“In some ways they’ve gone full circle. Those who are in their 70s and 80s experienced rationing and shortages after the Second World War and now they’re going through it all again.”
The poll of 117 Scottish adults, in an income bracket below the Government’s “households below average income” measurement, shows one in 20 skip meals to feed their children and three-quarters (76%) have spent more on food in the last year.
One in four said the quality of food they are eating has dropped in the last 12 months, the highest percentage in the UK. While just under one in four (23%) spend £40 a week or less on food.
Former chef, Chris Bell, 43, from Clydebank, says he now survives on a food budget of around £12 per week. He suffered a stroke last year and is now struggling to feed himself.
He said: “I’ve worked as a chef for 26 years, but right now I’ve got to choose between eating microwave dinners or eating some fresh vegetables and freezing.
“After everything else is paid, I’ve only got around £12 a week to spend on food.”
Another centre user, a 48-year-old full-time council worker and mother of two, said: “There are times I can’t afford my shopping bill. When that happens I’ll make sure my son eats before I do.
“In the last fortnight before pay day I would say I skip meals maybe twice a week, just to make sure he has enough. I’ve had to change the way I shop to find cheaper things.”
Oxfam Scotland said the poll “charts the real-life effects of rising food prices in Scotland”.
Judith Robertson, head of Oxfam Scotland, said: “Rising food prices are a global phenomenon and, despite the UK being one of the world’s richest economies, it’s affecting people here too.
“It is a gross injustice poor people in Scotland are finding it increasingly difficult to feed themselves and their families.”
Susan McPhee, head of policy at Citizens Advice Scotland, said: “Many people who come to the CAB are struggling to feed themselves and their family. It’s not just the fact that food is becoming more expensive, it’s also the fact that incomes are falling.
“This ‘double whammy’ means that many families are having to make decisions about how much they can afford to spend on ‘essentials’ like food and fuel.
“The figures in the Oxfam survey are not exaggerated. They are an entirely accurate picture of how Scots are living today.
“We call on ministers to accept this and consider the impact their policies are having on people -- in particular the Welfare Reform Bill, which is taking money away from those who are already struggling on the lowest incomes.”
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article