Bridging the gap between affordable and healthy food

I recently shared a ‘Future of Food’ reading list, featuring five eye-opening books which explore our evolving relationship with eating and offer a roadmap to help bring back food to what it should be: simple, natural, sustainable, affordable, and nutritious.?

I want to zoom in on the last two food hallmarks – affordable and nutritious – because there seems to be a widening gap between them on our plates, but food can and should be both if we are to build stronger communities and a healthier future.

As a pillar of our movement, Movimento Metropolitano, this belief has grounded our mission from the beginning. It’s what sparked the foundation of the MM ￡5 meal deal that’s been running across our sustainable community food markets since the first Mercato Metropolitano opened in Elephant & Castle in 2016.

Whether it’s a lunchtime work or study session, a catch up with friends, or a family weekend treat, I’ve always seen Mercato Metropolitano as a place for our local community to enjoy a variety of well-priced, nutritious food options.

But it goes far beyond that. It’s about fighting food poverty, confronting systemic barriers to food security, and taking a stand against ultra-processed ‘foods’ (UPFs). It’s about making access to healthy food a fundamental right rather than a privilege in a challenging food landscape.

What does this landscape look like??

Though there have been early signs of recovery in terms of supply chain instability, there are still risks posed by geopolitics, climate change, and biodiversity loss, with a recent report from the Department for Work and Pensions finding people in ‘food insecure’ households increased by 2.5 million in 2022/23, rising to 7.2 million people.?

What’s more, while the Trussell Trust reported more food parcels than ever before had been delivered in late 2023, children, disabled people, and ethnic minorities have been shown to often be among the worst affected by food insecurity, and ‘cheapflation’ was found to have hit the poorest the hardest.

Under the pressure of these compounding financial challenges, people are being pushed towards convenient, cheaper but less nutritious ultra-processed ‘foods’ which jeopardise their health, yet have been found to make up over half of the UK’s total calories.?

We must do more.?

If we are to truly build more inclusive communities and provide food for all (#food4all) to – not just survive – but achieve their full potential, then we must open more pathways for people to access healthy and affordable food.

This has been the vision and mission of our ￡5 meal deal over the years, which is an expression of our movement’s core belief in ‘food as a human right’ and its long-standing goal to address food insecurity head on.?

Seeing the daily impact of this deal on local people – welcoming them to our table to explore well-priced, natural, nutritious global cuisine – not only demonstrates its importance but also fuels our ambition to take this one simple initiative to the next level.

This is just a drop in the ocean in terms of the scale of action needed to redress global food security. But we will continue to find ways of building a bridge between people and the affordable, sustainable, and nutritious food they need to build a healthy future for their families.