Abstract

Introduction: Food poverty is a reality for many living in poverty in Ireland with an estimated 11.5% households experiencing it in 2015 [1]. Food costs are frequently reported as a key factor in food poverty. Previous Irish research, using a consumer-led approach, established household budgets needed for a Minimum Essential Standard of Living (MESL)[2,3]. This included the creation of a socially acceptable and nutritionally adequate7-day-weekly menu and food basket for six household types (pensioner couple, female pensioner, single male, lone parent with two children, and two different two parent, two children households). These food baskets offered an opportunity to investigate the actual weekly household cost of food and the food costs of children of different ages for low income households.
Methodology: The Irish MESL food baskets were used to estimate the cost of a total food basket and different food categories for the household types from 2014-2016.Annual inflation rates for food and non-alcoholic beverages and the individual food categories were used to update existing MESL food costs. The cost of food for children of different ages was established using the Nelson scale. Two lowincome scenarios-reliant on social welfare and earning minimum wage (or equivalent for pensionerswere used.
Results: The overall cost of food decreased from 2014 to 2016. The cost of the food basket ranged from 17% and 38% of take-home income for different household types and was higher for most rural households than urban households. Households with two children had the highest food costs and costs increased for households with older children. Households on state benefits required a larger percentage of take home income for food than households with an employed adult. Meat fruit and vegetables took up the largest share of food costs. The cost of feeding a teenager was twice that of a pre-school child.
Discussion: The costs identified in this research highlight the financial challenge faced by low-income households in providing a nutritious and acceptable diet.