Vulnerable Aussies are eating spoiled food and turning to dumpster diving, report finds

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More than half of Australia’s most vulnerable people have been forced to skip meals, while others have turned to dumpster diving because they cannot afford to buy food, new research shows.

A Salvation Army survey of 1500 Australians, who accessed the charity’s services over a 12-month period, found 63 per cent of them had skipped meals and 45 per cent had to choose between paying for housing or buying food.

The research, released today in conjunction with the launch of the Salvation Army’s annual Red Shield Appeal, also found over a quarter of respondents were forced to eat expired or spoiled food, while 1 in 20 had to eat food from rubbish bins.

Salvation Army major Warren Elliott said the numbers were shocking.

“To hear that one in 20 of our respondents are eating food being pulled out of bins, that’s quite alarming,” Elliott said.

“That came as a real shock to me.”

The new research comes amid a cost-of-living crisis, with grocery prices rising by 33 per cent over the past three years.

At the same time, rental prices have reached record highs.

Domain’s rental report, released earlier this month, shows the price of advertised rental units rose 12.9 per cent in Sydney, 14.6 per cent in Melbourne, 18 per cent in Brisbane and a whopping 22.2 per cent in Perth over the last year

Elliott said the charity was regularly seeing families that were having to make tough choices, with demand for the Salvation Army’s services increasing by about 15 per cent in the past year.

Mothers have told the Salvation Army they are skipping meals so they can feed their kids.

A 33-year-old mother who took part in the survey said she often skipped meals so she could buy her kids what they needed.

“(I’m) having to constantly borrow money off friends due to not being able to buy essentials,” the mum said.

“I’m having to go days without eating so my kids can eat, cancelling specialist appointments that are a requirement for my health due to the cost of living.”

Another mother said she also needed to borrow money to survive.

“Each week I am behind,” the mum said.

“Some weeks I have not paid my rent so I can provide for my kids and medical scans they have needed. It causes so much stress living on the edge.”

The charity has also seen a 35 per cent increase in the number of women and children seeking help after being impacted by violence, according to separate figures sent to potential donors by the Salvation Army this week.

Elliott said there was also an increase in the number of families coming seeking help.

“A lot of them are working, so it’s not necessarily the people on pensions,” he said.

Older women were also one of the fastest growing groups in Australia needing help, Elliott said.

“These are often single older women, who may have been through a later-in-life divorce or have lost a partner and are really struggling.

“We’re seeing growing numbers of older, single women across the board.”

Donations to the Salvation Army’s 60th Red Shield Appeal can be made by visiting salvationarmy.org.au or calling 13 SALVOS. You can also donate at any Salvos Store.