Cash-strapped families are ‘eating pet food’ to survive cost-of-living crisis, charity claims

Suffering families are “eating pet food” to survive the cost-of-living crisis, a charity claims.

Mark Seed, head of a community food project in Trowbridge, Cardiffsays poverty has hit areas so hard that people have to go to the lowest levels to feed their families.

According to community worker Mark Seed, people should eat pet food

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According to community worker Mark Seed, people should eat pet foodCredit: BBC
Mark, head of a community food project, says he is shocked by what people have to do because of the cost of living

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Mark, head of a community food project, says he is shocked by what people have to do because of the cost of livingCredit: Alamy

Mark claims that people who constantly feel the burden of skyrocketing inflation have even taken to heating food on their radiators.

The neighborhood worker told me the BBC: “I’m still shocked by the fact that we have people eating pet food.

“[There are] people trying to heat their food on a radiator or a candle.

“These are shocking stories that are actually the truth.”

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“Cardiff is a thriving city, but there are deprived areas that are just not acceptable.”

The Pantry, where Mark works, is a Community Trust funded facility that aims to reduce food poverty in Cardiff and provide affordable food and household essentials to over 160 local residents.

One of The Pantry’s visitors is Elizabeth Williams, 54, who said the project “makes a big difference” and brings communities together in difficult times.

She added, “I usually go without to make things better in my house.”

Mark also claims that people were not being paid enough to pay for basic necessities, with the cost of living crisis pushing prices up “so everyone is under pressure or they just can’t afford it”.

Last month, the cost of food rose again – with retail prices of groceries more than 12% higher than last November.

Mark added: “What they’re telling us is they’re working every hour they can.”

And he has called for adequate support for people in struggling households, even if they are not in areas affected by poverty.

The most recent Census results suggest that Wales as a whole has seen an improvement in deprivation over the last 10 years.

However, more than half of households (54.1%) still fall into one of the categories used to measure it, either being unemployed or long-term sick, having poor health or disability, having a low level of education or in an overcrowded or poorly heated home.

And the new data suggests six of Wales’ most deprived communities are in Cardiff.

The list is led by the community of Mark – Trowbridge and part of Rumney in the north of the city – with 29 households classified as underserved in all four categories.

This places it in the bottom 1% of over 7,000 similarly sized communities in England and Wales.

Trowbridge is in what Mark calls an “arc of poverty” running east to west of Cardiff.

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Mark added: “People who are in those positions of poverty would be the first to tell you it’s not easy to have a voice, it’s not easy to have your dignity and show yourself like someone who counts and unless you do no one is going to listen.

“Buildings are going up, the economy is booming and businesses are moving here – but there’s a gap and we’re trying to close it.”