News
2 in 3 Australian households with disability going hungry as cost-of-living crisis worsens.
As the cost-of-living crisis worsens, almost half of Australian renters with disability were found to have struggled to put food on the table over the past 12 months, according to the Foodbank Hunger Report 2025.
The Foodbank Hunger Report, an annual survey tracking Australia’s food insecurity crisis, revealed that cost-of-living pressures remain the number one concern for 1 in 3 households, followed by housing and the broader economy. When factoring in disability or health conditions, the figures rose to 2 in 3 households, according to the 2025 survey.
For those living with disability, a lack of financial resources, difficulty affording nutritious food, and hidden costs associated with disability can often mean skipping meals, according to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare.
Victorian father Jai Haines is a First Nations man living with an acquired brain injury and Type 2 Diabetes. He says skipping meals allows him to provide for his children but comes at a dangerous cost.
The food for my diabetes…is so expensive that I can't even afford to buy what I need…I'm going into hypers because the price of everything.
Jai Haines
He believes the government should introduce food vouchers, so the disability community doesn't miss out on vital nutrition.
“Stop this food wastage…give it to the people. You don't have to give money [but] at least give food vouchers…I would prefer food vouchers than money,” Mr Haines says.
Karl Quast is a community connector for Bendigo Community Health Services, providing social services for people with disability and complex mental health needs experiencing disadvantage.
He says there is a large intersectionality between disability and homelessness.
Rental properties are scarce in our area for people with disability…many live in boarding houses which charge up to 75% of the disability support pension for accommodation and bills
Karl Quast
The community worker argues that the current rental economy leaves the disability community with very little money to purchase quality food that provides adequate nourishment.
“They rely on welfare services,” he says.
Foodbank Australia CEO, Kylea Tink, is calling on the government to work with Foodbank to minimise the impact food insecurity has on Australian families.
“Food insecurity doesn’t discriminate,” said Ms Tink. “Australians are doing everything right: working, budgeting, seeking help - yet still going hungry. This is a failure of policy, not people. We need coordinated, national action now.”
To counter the food insecurity crisis, Ms Tink is urging the Federal Government to adopt the National Food Donation Tax Incentive and an immediate cash injection of $5 million to assist with natural disaster preparedness.
The Foodbank CEO claims the suggested National Food Donation Tax Incentive would make it cost effective and easier for farmers, growers and manufacturers to donate edible, surplus produce to food relief organisations instead of sending it to landfill.
A National Food Donation Tax Incentive is a not a radical suggestion…it would deliver enough food for the equivalent of 100 million meals, save producers and businesses money, and help to halve food waste by 2030
Kylea Tink
For now, the Foodbank CEO says Australians will continue to struggle until the government commit to positive change towards food insecurity.
“Food insecurity can be eradicated, but the Federal Government must step up, lead and take smart action to ensure Australians are not going hungry.”
If you wish to know more click here.