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“I rarely go into shops now unless I really need something,” said Lowri Williams, 56, from Lancashire.
“I just think it’s tempting to buy stuff that you haven’t got the money for… why would I just go and make myself feel worse?”
The single mother is one of 14 million people facing food insecurity in the UK, a figure that continues to rise year-on-year as the cost of essentials spirals.
Three-quarters of people in the UK (75 per cent) have worried about the cost of food in the last year or know someone who has, according to a new poll by charity Amnesty International UK.
A further 70 per cent said they have had to make changes to their eating and shopping habits, while two-thirds (66 per cent) think the next generation will find food even less affordable than now.
Ms Williams’s father died last year, an experience she said has forced her to grapple with shrinking finances alongside her grief.
“My dad was keeping us afloat with food money and help towards the mortgage because I didn’t have enough coming in,” she told The Independent.
“You’re literally spending all your energy and time looking at the bank balance… it’s a regular thought: ‘I’ve got no money.’”
Ahead of Labour’s first annual conference with Andy Burnham as leader, Amnesty has called on the new prime minister to introduce a ‘right to food’ bill, putting a duty on the government to ensure access to food.
Jen Clark, Amnesty International UK’s economic, social and cultural rights lead, said: “The polling shows that up and down the country people are worried about being able to afford the food they and their families need, and many fear the next generation will face an even greater struggle.
“Having the food you need is a basic human right and it must be guaranteed in law. The fact that more than eight in 10 people say there should be a legal right to food shows the strength of public concern about this issue.”
Laura, 39, from the Wirral is a private renter and single mother, also struggling with the cost of food. Although she claims universal credit for her back pain and sciatica, she is left with a £125 a month shortfall to pay her bills.
“It’s sitting there at nighttime knowing what money you’ve got, and how much you have to pay out,” she said. “It’s like banging your head against a brick wall every single month.
“I make sure my rent’s paid first and foremost before anything, because I feel if I’ve got a roof over our head, I can muddle through the rest of the month.
“That means sometimes I don’t eat or I’ll not eat for a few days. Or maybe if [my son’s] not eaten something I’ll eat what he’s left. And it’s awful to have to live like that.”
Food prices have spiked over the past five years, increasing by 39 per cent. Since 2022, nearly three million more people have been plunged into food poverty – when essential and nutritious food cannot be accessed – up from 11.6 million to 14 million.
Leading food bank provider Trussell said this has prompted a spike in demand for its services, distributing 2.6 million emergency food parcels in 2025, a 45 per cent increase from pre-pandemic levels.
Tyler, 23, lives with his mother and sister in London, where they currently struggle to afford food and other essentials. He said: “I know my mum doesn’t eat enough meals, and when I ask her she just says she is not hungry, but I think she is doing it so me and my sister can eat.
“This impacts me quite a lot mentally… I feel like a hindrance as mum pays for the food shop. It feels like I am letting her and myself down. I am looking for more hours at work so I can help out more.”
There are now fears that food prices will start to rise again as the US-Iran conflict hits economies worldwide. The spike in energy and fuel costs threatens to hit the cost of importing, while higher fertiliser costs could soon make growing crops more expensive.
Helen Barnard, director of policy and research at Trussell, said: “It’s deeply concerning that so many people are worried about the cost of food – but sadly this is not surprising. Every day, food banks across the UK support thousands of people who don’t have enough money coming in to afford the essentials. For people on the very lowest incomes, going without food or heating is already a daily reality.
“Rising prices hit families on the lowest incomes particularly hard, because essentials like food and energy take up a much greater share of their budgets, leaving very little room to absorb further increases.”
The food bank charity has called on the government to implement an ‘essentials guarantee’ in universal credit to ensure that the benefit meets the cost of necessities.
A government spokesperson said: “This government is determined to turn the tide on poverty after years of rising hardship. Our recent statistics show that effort is beginning to make a difference – household incomes have risen 5 per cent in real terms, food bank usage has fallen, and food insecurity is down.
“To ease cost-of-living pressures we have brought forward a wide range of measures, including raising the national minimum wage, sustaining the main rate of universal credit above inflation for the first time, suspending tariffs on everyday staples, leading to lower prices at the till and our £1 billion crisis and resilience fund which can be used by councils to help tackle food poverty.”
