The Cost of Healthy Food Baskets Northern Ireland 2016

1. The Cost of Healthy Food Baskets Northern Ireland 2016 Project Team • Dr Bernadette MacMahon DC • Director, VPSJ • Noreen Moloney • Researcher, VPSJ

2. Minimum Essential Food Baskets - Two Studies First Study (2015) – two household types: • Two parent, two child (pre-school and primary school age) household type • Pensioner, living alone household type Second Study (2016) – two household types: • Two parent, two child (primary and secondary school age) household type • One parent, two child (pre-school and primary school age) household type

3. Focus of Presentation • Background to the research & methodology used to establish the Minimum Essential Food Baskets in the 2016 study. • Results of research on the Cost of Healthy Food Baskets in Northern Ireland in 2016. • Changes in the Cost of Healthy Food Baskets in Northern Ireland November 2014 – March 2016.

4. Vincentian Partnership for Social Justice (VPSJ) • The VPSJ was established in 1996 to work for social and economic change tackling poverty and exclusion. • Two main approaches used to achieve our goal: • Active citizenship/voter education programme with communities alienated from the electoral democratic process: ‘Your vote is your voice’. • Development of the Minimum Essential Budget Standard for household types in Ireland.

5. Minimum Essential Standard of Living • Standard which no one should be expected to live below • Emphasis is on needs & not wants • Cost is based on actual price of detailed basket of over 2,000 goods & services

6. Minimum Essential Standard of Living • The VPSJ uses Consensual Budget Standards methodology to ascertain the level of income needed for an acceptable standard of living. Two parts to the research: • Expenditure required for a Minimum Essential Standard of Living (MESL) which meets physical, psychological and social needs. • Income needed to afford the expenditure – Minimum Income Standard (MIS).

7. Establishing the Expenditure • To establish the expenditure, focus groups are held for each household type. • Negotiated consensus on goods & services to be included in the baskets (approx 2000 items). • Experts are consulted in order to ensure that the negotiated consensus meets basic criteria e.g. nutritional standards. • Focus is on needs, not wants.

8. Focus Groups • Three different focus groups for each household type. • Mix of socio-economic backgrounds. • The focus groups were held in three locations across Northern Ireland: • Belfast • Derry/Londonderry • Enniskillen

9. Purpose of the Research (2016) • Using Consensual Budget Standards methodology to construct a Minimum Essential Food Basket (MEFB) for two household types: • Two parent, two child (primary and secondary school age) • One parent, two child (pre-school and primary school age) • Examine spending on food as proportion of household income.

10. Establishing the Food Baskets The Consensual Budget Standards (CBS) methodology has 4 stages: • Stage 1 Orientation - Focus Groups • Stage 2 Task - Focus Groups • Stage 3 Costing - Research Team • Stage 4 Check Back - Focus Groups

11. Stage 1 Orientation – Focus Groups Phase 1 • Negotiate consensus on purpose, terms, household type etc. • Homework – e.g. inventory of cupboards & food diary.

12. Stage 2 Task - Focus Groups Phase 1 • Develop 7 day menus – reach consensus. • Identify shopping outlets – reach consensus. • The researchers convert the menus into shopping lists.

13. Stage 2 Task – Focus Groups Phase 2 • Review agreed menus – reach consensus. • Review agreed shopping lists – reach consensus. • Review agreed shopping outlets – reach consensus. • Estimate the food costs. • The nutritionists assess the food baskets.

14. Stage 3 Costing – Research Team • Food items are priced in stores identified by focus group participants. • A lifespan is assigned to the food items.

15. Stage 3 Check Back – Focus Group Phase 3 • Reach a negotiated consensus on changes proposed by the nutritionists. • Reach a negotiated consensus on the cost of the food budgets. • Evaluation of the process.

16. Key Findings

17. Two Parent, Two Child Household Type(Primary and Secondary School Age)

18. One Parent, Two Child Household Type (Pre-school and Primary School Age)

19. Change in the cost of the Minimum Essential Food Baskets in the 2015 study

20. Two Parent, Two Child Household Type(Primary and Secondary School Age)

21. Two Parent, Two Child Household Type(Primary and Secondary School Age)

22. Two Parent, Two Child Household Type(Primary and Secondary School Age) The weekly income is hypothetical and an example of typical household income in this scenario.

23. One Parent, Two Child Household Type (Pre-school and Primary School Age)

24. One Parent, Two Child Household Type (Pre-school and Primary School Age)

25. One Parent, Two Child Household Type (Pre-school and Primary School Age) The weekly income is hypothetical and an example of typical household income in this scenario.

26. Change in the Cost of the MEFBs November 2014 – March 2016

27. Change in the Cost of the MEFBs November 2014 – March 2016

28. Overall Change in the Cost of the MEFBsNovember 2014 – March 2016

29. Reflections From Focus Group Participants • “You’d go anywhere to feed your children, if the price is right you would go.” • “You would be living on stuff that you wouldn’t necessarily want to give the kids but it’s the only way you can do it until you are stable again.” • “The first thing you do when someone comes to your house is offer them tea or coffee." • “No extra for any luxury at any time of the year.”

30. The Cost of a Healthy Food Basket • This research establishing the cost of a healthy food basket in N.Irl is based on views and opinions of members of public (and tested by nutritionists). • Based on what people should be able to afford at a minimum, but acceptable level. • Grounded in reality and the lived experience of ordinary members of the public.

31. www.budgeting.ie www.justicematters.ie www.misc.ie www.livingwage.ie Further VPSJ Minimum Essential Budget Standards research is available at: