Today in Parliament, Abigail passed a motion detailing the release of the Foodbank Hunger Report 2025 and highlighting the rising level of food insecurity across Australian communities.

Abigail said:

I move:

(1) That this House notes the release of the Foodbank Hunger Report 2025 on 5 November 2025, which explores the current hunger situation in Australia and found that:

• one in five Australian households are living in severe food insecurity, frequently skipping meals or going entire days without eating;
• overall, one in three or around 3.5 million Australian households are facing some level of food insecurity;
• working class Australians continue to experience high rates of food insecurity, with people with disability, single‑parent households, renters and people on low incomes most prominently affected;
• 67 per cent of households with a person with a disability are experiencing food insecurity, with 50 per cent of those in the severe category;
• 40 per cent of households reliant on part-time or casual work are experiencing food insecurity, and that these households remain significantly more likely to have experienced food insecurity in the past 12 months than the average Australian household;
• in New South Wales, 37 per cent of regional households and 31 per cent of metropolitan households are experiencing food insecurity, with both categories having increased since 2024;
• the cost-of-living crisis remains the primary contributor to food insecurity, cited by 79 per cent of food insecure households, and housing was cited by 45 per cent as the second most pressing concern;
• while awareness of food relief services is continuing to grow, this has not translated into higher access rates, with just one in four food insecure households accessing formal food relief; and
• embarrassment and the belief that others are in greater need continue to be the main barriers preventing people from seeking assistance.

(2) That this House further notes that:

• the special rapporteur on the right to food defines the right to food as having regular, permanent and unrestricted access (either directly or by means of financial purchases) to quantitatively and qualitatively adequate and sufficient food corresponding to the cultural traditions of the people to which the consumer belongs, and which ensure a physical and mental, individual and collective, fulfilling and dignified life free of fear;
• it is a core obligation of all levels of government to take the necessary action to mitigate and alleviate hunger, including during times of crisis and disasters;
• as a party to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, Australia is legally required to take whatever steps are necessary to ensure that everyone is free from hunger;
• in launching the Foodbank Hunger Report 2025, Foodbank's CEO, Ms Kylea Tink, said that hunger in Australia has become "mainstream", and that "the cost-of-living measures that the Federal Government tried to provide" did not "translate to food on the tables"; and
• Foodbank is calling on the Australian Government to adopt a tax incentive to make it easier for farmers, growers and manufacturers to donate edible, surplus produce, instead of sending it to landfill, to increase the amount of donated food available.

(3) That this House acknowledges with concern the rising levels of food insecurity across Australian communities.

(4) That this House affirms that it is a basic human right for everyone in our community to have regular, permanent and unrestricted access to adequate food.

(5) That this House calls on the Government to urgently address this crisis by providing cost-of-living relief to New South Wales communities and investing in evidence-based measures that tackle the drivers of food insecurity and economic inequality.

Motion agreed to.

Read the transcript in Hansard here.

12 November 2025