Regional Western Australia is experiencing a steep rise in the number of people struggling to afford food as the cost of living continues to climb.
Key points:
- Some regional towns have seen a 40 per cent increase in the number of people using Foodbank services
- The rise in people seeking food support has risen in line with national inflation figures
- People on lower wages are being disproportionately affected by rising costs of food and other household items
Josh Amdahl lives in the WA seaside town of Esperance and said buying food for his family had become a struggle.
"[The price has] definitely increased, two little bags of groceries is $70," he said.
"It's hard to go and shop for any kind of meal or a week of stuff and spend less than $100, mostly because everything is so expensive."
Mr Amdahl lives on a fixed income and shares custody of his seven-year-old daughter, who was born with Down syndrome.
He said after feeding his daughter, he often went without.
"Food often doesn't even occur to me, I feed my daughter and try to feed her good stuff but when she's not around, I don't eat that much," he said.
"I don't think about it, I don't feel hungry anymore."
He said his situation was becoming increasingly "hopeless".
Mr Amdahl is not alone in his struggle to put food on the table for his family.
Foodbank CEO Kate O'Hara said from Esperance to Albany, people across the state were feeling the financial pinch when it came to buying food.
"It's quite significant," she said.
"The reality of the front line is we're seeing people that look like everybody."
Demand rises with interest rates
The mining town of Kalgoorlie-Boulder, 400 kilometres north of Esperance, is also experiencing a rise in the number of people presenting at its Foodbank.
Ms O'Hara said demand had risen by 40 per cent in the past five months, with the increase in line with rising interest rates.
She said the profile of the people relying on the organisation had also changed.
"Not only are the numbers up, we're getting a lot of new, first-timers coming to the branch in Kalgoorlie, plus they're coming with vouchers, so this is quite a shift from where we've been," she said.
"The majority is the working poor, so this is people with jobs, people who never thought they would ever have to present to support before."
Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics shows a 6.1 per cent rise in the Consumer Price Index in the past 12 months to the June quarter, with food and non-alcoholic items rising 5.9 per cent.
Kalgoorlie-Boulder Mayor John Bowler said the wage gap in the region meant some people living in the Goldfields would be disproportionately affected.
"Food prices have gone up and that impacts upon particularly those people who aren't earning big bucks in the mining industry, people in the service industry, or on standard wage, and some of them are struggling," he said.
"The Foodbank in Boulder does a great job but it is a worry that so many people are starting to use it."
Struggling unseen
Ms O'Hara said for every person who came to the Foodbank, there were more who continued to struggle behind closed doors.
"What we know about it is the people that are coming forward, that's only a segment of the people in the community that are dealing with serious food stress," she said.
"They're skipping many meals each week and they're not buying as much because they just don't have the cash.
"We believe ... probably on every street across WA, there's somebody in need."
For Mr Amdahl, Foodbank is an option for when times are especially tough.
"I could go in now but I don't need to today," he said.
"I might by the end of my pay week but right now I'm okay."