Why can't the UK solve food insecurity? Episode one

Today marks the start of our Spotlight Series, sponsored by RSSL - a week in which we shine a light on a topic of particular importance. For its inaugural year, Spotlight is focused upon food security.

There is a continued rise in food insecurity across the UK. In June to July 2022, of the 91% of adults in Great Britain who reported an increase in their cost of living, 95% saw the price of their food shopping go up. Moreover, 44% had started spending less on essentials including food.

Further data from the Food Foundation showed that the levels of Brits experiencing food insecurity had risen from 7.3% in 2021 to 8.8% last year. In fact, one million adults reported that they or someone in their household had to go a whole day without eating last January because they couldn’t afford to access food.

In this first episode of a seven-part series, Food Manufacture's editor Bethan Grylls meets with Anna Taylor of the Food Foundation to discuss what food security means, the key drivers, and what impact recent political decisions have had on the UK food security and how food and beverage producers can help.