Call for price controls to help poor afford healthy diet

An Irish charity has called on the Government to consider imposing price controls on vital foodstuffs to ensure people on low incomes can afford a healthy diet.

Focus Ireland says healthy eating "on existing resources is not currently feasible for people on low income" in Ireland.

It said people on low income often choose less healthy food options because they are cheaper and as a result are more likely to suffer from poor diets and inadequate nutrition.

The charity today launched a new healthy eating campaign which it says aims to show the importance of diet for people surviving on low income.

The "Eat Well — Be Well" initiative will provide a number of cooking demonstrations by trained chefs at several Focus Ireland sites in Dublin over the next three weeks.

As part of the campaign, Focus Ireland will also distribute leaflets containing a range of healthy menu options with instructions on how to prepare them.

It called for a Government investigation into the basic foodstuffs required in the family basket to ensure a healthy diet.

It also said the Government should examine establishing price control on these key items and ensure welfare payments are sufficient so people can afford them.

The charity's chief executive Declan Jones said: "There are homeless people living in emergency accommodation and many others who aren't homeless living in substandard accommodation who can't afford to eat healthily as they have such a low income and in many cases nowhere to even cook or store food. "

Mr Jones said: "The bottom line is there has to be an increase in social housing provision backed by adequate welfare payments so people on low income will be able to cook healthy meals in their own homes."