The Big Picture

Nathan Poppe

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Running on Empty

For those living below the breadline, nutrition is a luxury not always on the table.

by Nathan Poppe, The Curbside Chronicle

One in six adult Australians – and 1.2 million children – did not have enough to eat last year, according to Foodbank’s 2021 Hunger Report. That’s more than 4 million people. More than half of them went a full day without eating at least once a week.

Food insecurity means a lack of consistent access to healthy eating options. And the reasons for it are multiple – skyrocketing rents and the vastly increased cost of living, coupled to wages that are being outstripped by inflation, and welfare payments that have long been below the poverty line. Work insecurity – not knowing how many hours you will get next week – compounds food insecurity. Indeed, two-thirds of those Australians going hungry are employed.

So what does food insecurity look like? Our fellow street paper, Oklahoma City’s The Curbside Chronicle, has taken a snapshot. They asked five of their vendors – some recently housed and others still transitioning out of homelessness – to keep a food diary for five days, then photographed what they ate in a day. While vendors’ means of securing food varied – from visiting food banks and soup kitchens to convenience stores and fast-food restaurants – cheap and readily available food, often highly processed and low in nutrients, was the order of the day.

Richard, 47, is currently sleeping rough. It’s common for him to skip meals and some days he doesn’t eat at all – especially if the weather makes it hard for him to get around. He relies a lot on food from service stations or convenience stores – he aims for cheap and filling – and almost always finds a way to start his day with coffee. Often, Richard eats one large meal a day.

Breakfast

7-Eleven coffee

Lunch

3 microwave burritos Soft drink

Dinner

None

Richard

Danny

Housing changed Danny’s eating habits, as he can more easily snack at home throughout the day. Before, he used to bounce between shelters to make sure he could secure three meals. Today, it’s rare for Danny, 61, to skip meals, and he’ll often share food with friends. He’ll have at least one soft drink daily and sometimes relies on shelters and charities for a meal as well. Normally, Danny spends a few dollars a day on food or snacks, but on this day he splurged on a pizza. He stretched it over two meals.

Breakfast

Oatmeal Cream Pies 7-Eleven coffee

Lunch

Pizza Hut pizza Beer

Dinner

Leftover pizza Soft drink

Breakfast

French toast Eggs Milk

Dinner

McDonald’s Double Cheeseburger Fries Soft drink

William

William says when you’re on the streets, eating can feel like a chore: “It’s not an enjoyable thing. Just get it in your stomach and get out.” He usually skips at least one meal a day – usually lunch or dinner – but he often secures a snack. On this day, he wouldn’t have eaten breakfast without the help of a friend. Most days, he’ll spend less than $10 on food and relies on food stamps. If he eats out, then it’s almost exclusively near where he sells Curbside.

Justin

Justin, 43, recently secured housing, and says he’s thankful for a fridge to store food and an oven to cook in. Even so, securing food after experiencing homelessness remains a challenge. Justin relies heavily on donations from food banks and friends. He often snacks on apples, oranges and almonds throughout the day – and he skips a few meals throughout the week.

Lunch

Burrito Coleslaw Water

Breakfast

Sausage patties Oranges Coffee

Lunch Hot dogs Soft drink

Dinner Coffee

Breakfast

Porridge Toast 2 eggs Hot chocolate Water

Dinner

Fried Chicken Mashed potatoes Corn Water

Jim

Jim, 57, relies on a local shelter and donations from churches for most of his meals. Although he appreciates the food, Jim says he’s often still hungry throughout the day. He has a tall build and a good appetite. He doesn’t skip meals and often saves donations so he can snack between meals. Jim currently lives in a community housing project.

Letter to My Younger Self This Is What I Was Destined to Do

Ronni Kahn, founder and CEO of food rescue charity OzHarvest, on feeding Australians on the margins, finding her voice – and why anything is possible when it’s for the common good.

by Anastasia Safioleas Contributing Editor

@anast

My 16-year-old self was a bit wishy-washy. She didn’t show strong character and if I bumped into her now, I’d think, Wow, she’s got so much to learn. She was a very young woman who was a little nervous and didn’t have the confidence to share her opinions broadly. She was a bit of a follower, but really excelled at sport – I had energy even back then – but wasn’t confident about her academic credentials. I didn’t think I was pretty. I knew I had a good figure, but I wasn’t very comfortable in my body. Perhaps wishy-washy is a little harsh!

I came from a family with two older

sisters. We were three girls and very close. I adored my older sisters. At 16 I was going to parties and was very involved in a youth movement. Really that was my obsession. Going to this youth movement was this wonderful outlet where

we could talk about politics. It was also where our social life was, so I had a close-knit group of friends. One year later, I finished school. I had just turned 17, so I was young, and soon after I left the country to go and study overseas. I had also just found a boyfriend – the man that I ended up marrying.

The youth movement was about encouraging Jewish youth to go and live on

a kibbutz [in Israel]. It was very much against the realities of apartheid we were living under in South Africa at the time. It was our social freedom – we could talk politics. Because you couldn’t talk politics outside of that, because you could be heard and you could be jailed, whereas within the confines of our youth movement, it felt like we could be activists.

The biggest surprise of my life has been

turning out to be who I am today. I’m still in awe. If you ask people who have known me since I was young, they’re not surprised. But I am. I’ve always done what I’ve loved, I just had never done what I love that then became the most meaningful thing I’ve ever done in my life because it affected so many other people. It’s this notion that this is what I was destined to do – I knew that soon after I started rescuing food and started building OzHarvest. But as a 16-year-old my aspirations were not in any way, shape or form that I would start a charity, be given an Order of Australia… I still pinch myself that it actually happened to me. Yet nothing about OzHarvest’s success surprises me. When I found that alignment, the universe just started opening up to bring whatever it needed and continues to do that.

Since COVID, OzHarvest has been busier.

[The pandemic] shone a light on those who are vulnerable. It exposed the inequalities in our society. It’s not just vulnerable people who fell through the cracks, it’s people who are working but can’t afford to pay their bills. That’s what COVID has done, it’s literally exposed the economic inequity of our society. People need our food and services more than ever before. Many more people were added to those in need through COVID, people who’d never considered themselves needing relief in any way. It’s hugely important never to hanker back to what we had. We’ve worn masks but we’ve exposed ourselves – people have never shown so much vulnerability.

My most memorable experience was when I received the call that I was chosen as Australia’s Local Hero in

2010. It was an out-of-body experience. It was just the most extraordinary moment when clearly it was Adam Gilchrist calling me. Honestly, I thought he was calling to say, “Thank you so much, you’ve been considered but try again next time.” When he said I was Australia’s Local Hero. I thought it’s just not possible. I was sure they’d made a mistake. Little Ronni Kahn! It was a big deal.

I’ve got magnificent children and I’ve got

beautiful grandchildren. I’m really blessed. I think the birth of my first grandchild was the most precious. But then it’s just continued because I’ve got six. It’s a lot of hugs and a lot of loving.

My biggest challenge was when I was faced

with the death of my daughter-in-law. She died six years ago. She was young and it happened very fast; she died in eight weeks. While there were challenges with the birth of OzHarvest these were all things one can get through. Whereas when we can’t control life or death, it’s very painful. It was one of the biggest learning experiences. A deeply, profoundly powerful experience: the grace in death and dying and recognising that this is all we have, really. I’ve always known this because my mother also died very young.

If I could go back to any particular day or time in my life it would be the day I left South Africa for Israel at the

age of 17. I thought I was going on the biggest adventure of my life. I hadn’t realised I’d never come back to live in South Africa. I’d left my boyfriend behind; I’d left my parents for the first time, and I was very, very close to them. I didn’t even like sleepouts; I would cry and want to go home. Now it was my first time on an aeroplane. I hadn’t planned to go and emigrate. I went to study overseas but never came back. I don’t miss South Africa. I miss the people. And there’s no doubt that the colour of its earth and its smell and sounds are deeply rooted in my soul. But I don’t miss living there at all. In fact, it’s certainly not my home. My home is here.

I would tell my 16-year-old self

to believe in yourself. You’ve got so much to offer, just know that it will slowly unfurl and develop. Don’t give up on yourself. Back then I didn’t know that I had the courage to do the things that I now know I can. Now I’m unstoppable. I don’t want to sound arrogant, it’s just that I believe that anything’s possible as long as it’s in the service and good of others. There’s so much to do and I just want to do it all.

TOP: RONNI AT A SYDNEY GROCER IN 2013 BOTTOM: AT OZHARVEST’S “THINK EAT SAVE” RESCUED FOOD FEST IN 2017 13 MAY 2022