BAGS OF TASTE:
FROM POOR DIETS TO RICHER LIVES
We believe everyone should be able to afford good food, that doesn’t make them sick.
People in poverty have the poorest diets, often characterised by high consumption of highly processed, “fast” and fatty foods, low in vegetables and nutrients. This leads them to get sicker and die younger than the rest of the population. This is food poverty, and its effects on health, mental health and finances can keep people trapped in poverty.
The reasons for this poor diet are not as simple as people generally believe. People often believe that either people in poverty either need to learn to cook, or are “too lazy to cook”. In reality, research shows that people in poverty are no worse, or better, than the rest of the population at cooking. So this does not explain their significantly worse diet. The explanation lies elsewhere.
Bags of Taste works with highly vulnerable people in food poverty to address the economic, structural and practical barriers that prevent them from improving their diets. Outcomes include an 85% drop in takeaway consumption; £1,300 per annum savings on food bills and takeaways, and 54% of participants report improved health.