Tasmania’s hunger crisis hitting working families, renters

One in three Tasmanian households has struggled to get food on their plates as food insecurity grips the state, a new report has revealed.

Food insecurity Tasmania and Uniting Vic. Tas CEO Jeremy Pettet.

Almost a quarter of all Tasmanian households have experienced severe food insecurity in the past 12 months, while a third of homes have struggled to access food, a new food relief report has shown.

Australia’s largest food relief organisation Foodbank released its annual Foodbank Hunger Report 2025 on Wednesday, which collated data through an online survey between June and July this year.

Foodbank Tasmania warehouse at Cambridge, food and stock on shelves inside the storage warehouse at Cambridge

New figures show increasing numbers of employed and housed families being affected by food insecurity.

One in three Tasmanian households, or 81,000, experienced food insecurity in the

past year and almost a quarter – 23 per cent – of all households in the state reported facing the most severe level of hardship, regularly skipping meals or going entire days without eating.

These were typically concentrated in regional areas of the state, with 36 per cent of households in regional areas facing food insecurity compared to 30 per cent in

metropolitan areas.

Food insecurity among renting households dropped from 53 per cent in 2024 to 42 per cent this year.

Foodbank Tasmania CEO Cameron Johns said the “quiet issue” of food security is representative of what the organisation is seeing in requests for help.

Food bank workers, Angela Lin and Indigo Knight who are preparing hampers for those in need. Picture: Linda Higginson

“It reflects what it was last year, however, we did have this time last year, much higher interest rates,” he said.

“It is really worrying when we were being told that interest rates would drop and well, you know, the rainbows would appear and everything would be fantastic – that actually hasn’t materialised.

“Food insecurity is a much more ‘baked-in’ problem than just lowering interest rates.

“The everyday Tasmanian is doing it hard.”

Mr Johns said the data also showed that nearly half of all renters in Tasmania were experiencing a food security issue and that nationally, one in five people earning $90,000 were experiencing food insecurity.

“Food is the quiet issue where no one asks if someone’s had a meal today,” Mr Johns said.

Uniting Vic. Tas CEO Jeremy Pettet said his organisation, who works with Foodbank to provide food relief, has seen first-hand the increase of the ‘working poor’.

Uniting Tasmania executive officer, Jeremy Pettet. Picture: Zak Simmonds

“In the past five years, the typical people we would see seeking relief, such as the unemployed or those experiencing homelessness, still come, but more and more, we are seeing families, people working, people paying rent or a mortgage coming to us,” he said.

“For a lot of people, fresh fruit, vegetables and meat are out of their budget entirely.

“Food relief services are often an entry point to more assistance – organisations can provide immediate material aid, but they are also a referral point for further services.”

In the financial year 2025, Foodbank Tasmania sourced the equivalent of 1.6m meals for

those in need across the state and continues to work with growers, manufacturers and

retailers to source food for the 210 agencies and schools that it partners with.

Originally published as Tasmania’s hunger crisis hitting working families, renters