Ruokaturvattomuuden yleisyys ja taustatekijät Suomessa 2019

Although the health and nutrition status of the Finnish population has developed in a favorable direction in the long-term, inequality in access to healthy food remains a challenge. In addition, recent societal circumstances, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, high inflation and cuts to welfare benefits have made food insecurity a topical subject. Food insecurity refers to a situation in which economic resources are not sufficient to cover a nutritionally adequate and socially acceptable diet. However, Finland is lacking information on the prevalence of food insecurity on a population level. The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence and predictors of food insecurity in Finland. For the analysis we used the International Social Survey Programme data (n=991) for Finland collected in 2019. Food insecurity was measured by asking the respondents “How often do you or somebody in your household have to skip meals because there is not enough money to buy food?” Sociodemographic differences were examined by gender, age, family structure, education, working status and socioeconomic status. Descriptive methods and logistic regression analysis were used as research methods. The results show that 12,7 percent of the respondents reported food insecurity in their households. Food insecurity was associated with low income, single parenthood, and living alone. In the future, the prevalence of and population group differences in food insecurity should be followed regularly with an appropriate measurement scale. This is especially important considering the recent increases in living costs and cuts to social welfare benefits.