Datafolha shows that lack of food affects almost 40% of low-income Brazilians

A Datafolha survey points out that 26% of Brazilians claim that the amount of food at home has not been enough to feed their families in recent months. The percentage reaches 37% among those with a monthly income of up to two minimum wages.

39% of the families that receive Auxílio Brasil, a social program that replaced Bolsa Família, are compared to 22% among those who do not qualify for the benefit intended for the poorest.

The highest level of people affected by food shortages is found in the Northeast (35%). In other regions of the country, it varies from 21% to 25%.

Among people who are unemployed but looking for a job, 45% said they did not have enough food. Among those who gave up on finding an occupation, they are 34%.

On the other hand, entrepreneurs (9%), students (13%) and civil servants (15% said they did not have enough food) are below average.

Also noteworthy is the 34% among people who would vote for ex-president Lula (PT) in 2022 and the 12% among those who intend to vote for Jair Bolsonaro (PL).

The survey was carried out from December 13th to 16th, with 3,666 Brazilians in 191 municipalities. The margin of error is two percentage points down or up.

The survey also shows that 15% of Brazilians have stopped eating in recent months because they do not have food at home. The number rises to 23% among families with a monthly income of up to two minimum wages. In the other ranges, it varies from 3% to 6%.

In the families that receive Brazil Aid, 26% did not have any meals. There are 11% among those who do not qualify for the benefit.

By region, the highest percentages of affected people are in the Midwest/North (20%) and Northeast (17%). The smallest, in the South (13%) and Southeast (11%).

By occupation, unemployed people looking for a job (30%) stand out at one extreme and entrepreneurs (3%) at the other.

The number reaches 17% and 15%, respectively, between browns and blacks. There are 11% among whites. Among Lula’s supporters, 19%. Among those intending to vote for the current president, 8%.

Also according to Datafolha, 89% of those interviewed said that, during this period of pandemic, the number of people suffering from hunger in Brazil increased. This perception is predominant regardless of the economic and social profile of the respondent or the region in which he lives.

The lowest levels in the cutouts by profile were found among businessmen (81% think that hunger has increased), people who said they had more than enough food for the family (79%), interviewed with a preference for PL, Bolsonaro’s party, or who would vote for president in first round 2022 (74% in both cases). Among those who assess the government as excellent/good, 73% say that hunger has increased.

Increased unemployment, falling income and high inflation are among the factors that are blamed for the increase in hunger during the pandemic. There was also great oscillation in relation to the government’s social programs, with the introduction of emergency aid of up to R$1,200 last year, a program that was suspended at the beginning of the year and whose value was reduced in 2021. Later, the government ended the Bolsa Família , which was replaced by Auxílio Brasil.

The report “Food Insecurity and Covid-19 in Brazil”, published at the beginning of the year by Rede Pensan (Brazilian Network for Research on Food and Nutritional Sovereignty and Security), showed that 43.4 million people did not have enough food and 19 million Brazilians faced hunger during the pandemic.

Food insecurity is characterized by people’s lack of access and availability to food in sufficient quantity for survival.

Hunger has gained face in recent months, whether in scenes starring families in search of food close to disposal in downtown São Paulo, looking for food in the garbage in Fortaleza or following the path of the bone truck in Rio de Janeiro.

This week, the city of São Paulo registered protests against hunger in at least 15 neighborhoods.

One of them, in front of the Stock Exchange, where, in early December, a sculpture of a lean cow was placed, alluding to hunger and misery, after the controversy over the Golden Bull placed in the same place.