'Feeding young children should be joyful but has been filled with worry and stress'

Improving nutrition in the early years of a child's life can reduce health and food inequalities and have long-term benefits for economic growth. However, many parents across the UK struggle to access or afford nutritious food for their children and themselves. Three citizens with lived experience of food insecurity share the challenges and solutions they see as experts by experience:

Over the last two years, The Food Foundation has published three reports focusing on nutrition for babies, toddlers and children under 5 (the “early years”). Starting with Preconception, Pregnancy and Healthy Weight in Childhood, the series included Breaking Down Barriers To Breastfeeding To Support Healthy Weight In Childhood, and Boosting Early Years Nutrition to Support a Healthy Childhood.

This report series shone a light on the inequalities faced new parents when trying to access and afford nutritious food, and particularly those on low incomes.

For the launch of the final report, we invited three Food Ambassadors to Westminster to speak directly to policymakers about their lived experience of parenthood on a low-income.

As experts by experience, the Food Ambassadors spoke candidly about subjects rarely shared with strangers and their words carried weight: they brought to life the realities of millions of parents struggling to provide nutritious food to their babies and toddlers.

Food Ambassador Penny Walters, from Newcastle, hosted the launch of the first report. She reflected on the experience:

"People like me don't usually get to do something like this. It was so important, not just because of where it was, but it was because of the subject I as talking about, the barriers to breastfeeding and later childhood overweight and obesity.

"During that time, my daughter, Heather, was about to have her first baby. And because of her health conditions and medications, she was told she might not be able to breastfeed. Now that hit hard. Suddenly, we were looking at the cost of formula, bottles, sterilizers, prep machines.

"If you don't get a maternity grant, and many people don't, how are you supposed to afford it all? We've been lucky. We've had the support network of friends who have lent us everything, but not everybody has.

"For some families, the cost is too much. Honestly, I was hopeful after the event. Everything I spoke about was so relevant, whether it was the cost of formula, the stigma around breastfeeding, or the lack of support for new mothers.

"It also made me realise how important it is to keep pushing for change, especially when it comes to supporting mothers and babies."

Penny Walters on the struggles facing new mothers

Food Ambassador Kathleen Kerridge, from Portsmouth, wrote of her experience of motherhood on a low income:

"I was heartbroken when I was unable to breastfeed, and I relied on Milk Tokens (as they used to be) to ‘buy’ two tins of formula a week.

"If I had to find the money from my own pocket, bottle-feeding my children would have been close to impossible, because I couldn’t have afforded to buy their formula.

"Those tokens kept my children fed when I was unable to, which is why it’s so important to invest more into the Healthy Start scheme; the Government has the power to ensure all children have access to a nutritious diet and ensure no parent is priced out of feeding their child, or forced to stop breastfeeding before they're ready."

See Kathleen's full piece in the foreword of the report series summary of recommendations here.

Food Ambassador Barbara Achingale, from Hartlepool, shared the challenges faced by her and her husband:

"Feeding young children should be a joyful and nourishing part of family life, but for me, it has often been filled with worry and stress.

"Accessing healthy food for my girls has been difficult. Fresh fruit, vegetables, baby formula and so many other things, as they are expensive. And when you’re trying to stretch every pound, healthy choices are often the first thing to go.

"That’s why the Healthy Start scheme is so important. It gives parents like me a small but meaningful tool to feed our children better.

"The Healthy Start scheme gave us a small bit of relief and I am so grateful. But then, without warning, we were told we are no longer qualified, simply because my husband’s income was just above the threshold. Suddenly, we were cut off.

"It felt like a rug had been pulled from under us. We were just getting by with that extra help and now, we’re back to square one. Things need to change."

Barbara's speech can be watched here:

@thefoodfoundation 🎉 In May, we launched our new report Fueling the Future at an event in Parliament! 🍎 The report highlights key barriers to good nutrition in the early years – including the marketing of baby and toddler foods and weak nutrition standards in childcare settings. 🎤 Our amazing Food Ambassador Barbara spoke about why Healthy Start should be expanded to cover all children aged 0 to 5, and why the income threshold should be raised so more families can access support. #FuelingTheFuture #HealthyStart #EarlyYearsNutrition #FoodJustice #ParliamentLaunch #FoodAmbassador #ChildHealth #FuelingTheFuture #HealthyStart #EarlyYearsNutrition #foodforthought #FoodEquality ♬ original sound - The Food Foundation

The Food Foundation is calling on the government to:

1. Improve the affordability of healthy diets and strengthen nutritional safety nets
2. Improve standards on the composition and marketing of commercial baby milk and foods
3. Support early years settings to deliver nutritious food for all young children 
4. Invest in local services and legislation to help protect families and provide them with the support they need
5. Shift the incentives across the whole food system, to help deliver nutrition for all ages

Investing in early years nutrition is an investment in health, capabilities and wellbeing or future generations, in turn boosting the economy and reducing pressure on the NHS.

Improving early years nutrition is about tackling health and food inequalities, creating a fairer, more just food system where healthy, nutritious and tasty food is affordable and accessible to all.