Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Household Budgets: Food Prices

Thursday 27 January 2022 · 3 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 0 Partly answered 3 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Food prices are affected by exchange rates and energy prices which have increased since the pandemic.
  • The government supports FareShare, a charity that redistributes food to prevent waste and support food banks.
  • Neil Parish requested 5 million to directly supply food from farms to those in need.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Rupa Huq Lab Ealing Central and Acton
Economy Agriculture & Rural Affairs
Context

Food prices have risen significantly, affecting household spending. The UK Food Security Report 2021 noted that over the past decade, the poorest 20% of households spent relatively stable amounts on food.

Question

What assessment his Department has made of the impact of food price rises on household budgets?

Answer from George Eustice

Food prices are influenced by exchange rates and energy prices, both of which have risen since the coronavirus shock. Last year, we published the “United Kingdom Food Security Report 2021” which included a comprehensive analysis of household level food security.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The answer did not provide an assessment of the impact of rising food prices on household budgets as specifically requested.

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Q2 Rupa Huq Lab Ealing Central and Acton
Environment
Context

Food banks have become more common than McDonald's branches, reflecting high inflation rates. Simultaneously, significant amounts of food are wasted by retailers.

Question

Will the Secretary of State sit down with the big top 10 and charities such as City Harvest in Acton, the Felix Project and the newly launched Ealing Food Cupboard, and work out a way to link the two in a circular economy fashion to eliminate both landfill waste and food insecurity?

Answer from George Eustice

The hon. Lady raises an important point that we can reduce food waste. A number of supermarkets are already engaged in programmes to support local food banks. The Government support the FareShare charity, which also helps to redistribute food and tries to prevent food waste.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The answer did not commit to a meeting with supermarkets and charities as requested but acknowledged existing efforts by some retailers.

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Q3 Neil Parish Con
Benefits & Welfare Agriculture & Rural Affairs
Context

Retailers have been criticized for keeping prices high on budget items while not raising the cost of higher-priced food. There is a proposal to provide FareShare with £5 million to distribute farm-sourced food directly.

Question

Can he see the £5 million that I think it is due to get food directly from farms, processors and retailers straight out to the people who need it?

Answer from George Eustice

I am aware that my hon. Friend has asked previously whether FareShare could also be engaged in making sure that food from farms does not go to waste, and I have said that I am willing to discuss that with it. On his point about prices, we have a highly competitive retail sector and, generally speaking, it has absorbed some of the price pressures to date.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The answer did not commit to allocating £5 million as requested but was willing to discuss food waste prevention with FareShare.

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