Most cultures regard eating as a social activity, yet increasingly, people are eating less healthy food as they eat alone or on-the-go.
Busy working lives can also mean that our time for the preparation of home-cooked food is limited.
On Monday evening, I joined fellow MPs in a debate on the importance of a healthy diet.
I took to the debate a piece of East Devon, by informing MPs about the excellent work of Project Food.
It was based on a visit that I made to a Project Food session in Axminster last October when I had the delight of sampling what a difference some rudimentary cooking lessons can make to produce a healthy meal.
With over eleven per cent of UK households experiencing food insecurity, and millions having turned to food banks or ultra-processed cheap food just to get by, charities like Project Food are more vital than ever.
Nutritious food can be expensive.
Some of us may also not be confident about our cooking abilities.
There are a range of reasons why many people don’t cook from scratch on a regular basis.
Alarmingly, a report by the Food Foundation revealed that low-income households now need to spend up to 50 per cent of their disposable income on food if they are to meet government recommendations on what is a healthy diet.
Project Food, based at the community hospitals at Axminster and Ottery St Mary, runs cooking demonstrations, hands-on sessions, one-to-one support, and online classes for different groups and individuals, as well as residents who simply wish to improve their healthy cooking skills.
While the debate on Monday was principally about diet and food, I also sought to remind MPs of the co-benefits of reducing sugar intake.
Fewer than half of the children in Devon saw a dentist last year.
We know that tooth decay is the leading cause of hospital admissions for children aged between five and nine.
The reformulation of food to reduce sugar content can help reduce our requirement – including for the NHS dental access that many people don’t have in this area!
With some spare capacity, community hospitals across England could become hubs for nutrition programmes and other public health measures, supporting healthier communities and reducing the future strain on healthcare services.
Project Food provides excellent service.
I believe the government would do well to find the resources to continue that work and scale it up.
In lieu of that, if you’d like to offer your support, make a donation, or sign up for a cookery class, the team can be contacted at www.project-food.org.uk.
