MORE than five and a half million low-income households in the UK are cut ting down on or skipping meals, the Joseph Rountree Foundation revealed yesterday, describing it as the ‘horrendous new normal’.
The number of low income households on Universal Credit going without items such as food, heating or basic toiletries (63%) has remained around seven million for more than a year.
Of the 2.3 million low-income households on Universal Credit, more than two thirds have been forced into changing the kind of food they buy – including making less nutritious choices.
Around nine in ten (87%) low-income households on Universal Credit have gone without at least one essential for the third survey in just over a year.
Three quarters (76%) have gone hungry, cut down on or skipped meals in the last 30 days.
In another report ahead of today’s Office for National Statistics (ONS) monthly inflation report, Kantar market research groups said yesterday that grocery prices increased by 16.5% in the four weeks to 11 June compared with the same period a year ago.
UK food prices are rising at their fastest rate in nearly 45 years, with staples such as sugar and pasta up sharply.
People are increasingly cooking with their microwaves to save money as prices soar.
Kantar also found there were 4% fewer meals made using an oven in the 12 weeks to 11 June versus the same period last year, while microwaved meals rose 8%.
Grocery price inflation remains very high, leaving 70% of households saying they are ‘extremely’ or ‘very’ worried about rising food prices.
‘People are thinking more and more about what they eat and how they cook as the cost of living crisis takes its toll on traditional behaviours,’ said Fraser McKevitt, head of retail and consumer insight at Kantar.
‘The most prominent change we’ve seen is that people are preparing simpler dishes with fewer ingredients. We also saw a reduction in hob use and a rise in food prepared with toasters and grills.’
The 16.5% rise compared to 12-months ago in the four weeks to 11 June was the sixth highest monthly figure for the past 15 years.
Households seeking ways to save are increasingly switching to the cheapest supermarket own-label lines, Kantar said, with total spending on these value ranges up by 41% since last year.
Kantar data also showed that sales at discount chains Aldi and Lidl had surged by 24.6% and 23.2%, leaving them with ever larger shares of the grocery market.
McKevitt warned consumers will continue to be hurt at the till as summer wears on – the price of seasonal favourites like ice cream and mineral water have gone up by around a fifth since last year, while burgers and sausages are up 16% and 13% respectively.
