I'm seeing people recycling the "but fruit and veg are cheap, poor people can definitely buy them!" argument, and here are some of the problems with that:

1. When you're living in poverty, your priority is "eat enough calories not to starve". Fruit and veg has very low calorific value for its weight. It's expensive to eat enough fruit and veg to keep you alive.

2. Fresh fruit and veg may need a fridge to keep it fresh. Frozen fruit and veg needs a freezer. People living in poverty might well not have access to either.

3. Fresh fruit and veg goes off very quickly, so you have to shop for it every few days (expensive), throw it away (wasteful), or eat rotten food (very unhealthy).

4. If you're on a really tight budget and buying from the reduced section, there's no guarantee of what will be there. One time I was in my local Co-op and I could have got a pot of clotted cream and a turnip for 20p altogether, but what the hell could I have made with that?!

Poverty shouldn't exist in a world where there's so much wealth, but it does, because that wealth is hoarded. Poor people's lack of access to varied, nutritious food isn't their fault, it's capitalism's fault.

I do want to clarify with this thread that I haven't lived in poverty myself (I've been poor and eligible for benefits, but never tipped over into poverty). However, I listen to people who have lived in poverty and know it's not as simple as "just buy yourself a nice salad".

This is getting some traction, so if you can, please donate to the Trussell Trust https://www.trusselltrust.org/make-a-donation/