No money for food? Here’s what you can do

So you’ve found yourself in a position where you have no money for food. The kids are hungry, you’re hungry, and you’re panicking about how on earth you’re going to feed everybody. With the cost of living rising rapidly, you aren’t alone. But don’t panic, there are things you can do to get some food on the table.

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Do you really have no food?

If you really don’t have any food in the house, then skip this step. But sometimes, there is some food in the house but we just can’t see how to make a meal out of it. When times are desperate though, and you don’t have the money to go out and buy any food, you can make do with what you can find in the cupboards. Even a small amount of a few different food items can be put together to make enough food to fill everyone’s tummies.

Do a stock check of everything you have in your cupboards, fridge and freezer. Write down a list of every single item you have. You’ll probably be surprised at what you actually do have and could potentially have adequate food to get your family through the day. Things like pasta or rice can be used to make a filling meal by just mixing in some chopped tomatoes. It may not sound particularly appetising, but at least it will fill everybody up whilst you’re struggling for money.

Tinned food lasts a long time, and is great to keep in the house for times like these. We always seem to have tins of beans or spaghetti shapes at the back of the cupboard. If you’ve got any bread then you could just have beans on toast, but just a bowl of baked beans is pretty filling.

Frozen vegetables can also be mixed in with pasta to make a healthier, more filling dish. Have you got a bag of frozen peas hiding at the bottom of the freezer? Now is the time to dig it out.

What about any porridge oats hiding in the cupboard? Hot porridge is super filling and very satisfying, and who cares if it’s normally eaten as a breakfast item. Heat up a bowl of hot porridge for dinner and enjoy that full stomach feeling.

Can you find a few pence around the house?

OK, so if money’s tight then obviously you’re not going to have lots of cash lying around the house. But you probably do have a few coins here and there and even a little amount of cash could be enough to feed your family tonight.

Firstly, check your bank account. Is the balance actually £0 or do you have a few pence or pounds that you could use to buy food?

Check in the classic places for any loose change. That’s down the back of the sofa, in any old bags that you don’t usually use, pockets in the coat you put away until next season, and in the centre console of the car.

Even finding 50p could be enough for you to get enough food for today. At the time of writing, a 1kg bag of rice in Aldi costs 45p. OK, so plain rice isn’t the tastiest of dishes, but you could mix in a little of whatever sauce you have in the house, or just eat it plain whilst you get your finances sorted out. Any food at this point is better than none.

Check OLIO and other free food apps

OLIO is a great app to download if you don’t have the money to put food on the table. The app gets updated daily by individuals and businesses who have surplus food to give away. It’s completely free to use and you can often get things like bread and potatoes which are nice and filling.

There are other apps available too.

Do you have loyalty points you could use?

If you have any loyalty cards building up points, then take a look at how many points you have altogether.

Tesco and Nectar points can be used to buy food, whilst you can use your Boots Advantage Card points to buy essentials such as soap and toothpaste.

If you don’t have any of these cards, then definitely get yourself a Tesco one at least, they now only give many of their discounts to clubcard holders, so you’re overpaying if you don’t use a clubcard.

Make some money quickly

If you don’t have any money for food, then there are things you can do to make some money quickly.

De-clutter

First of all, take a look around the house to see what you can de-clutter and sell to make some quick, easy money. If you’ve got small children, then you’ve probably got clothes, toys and even baby accessories that they’ve outgrown. You can sell these for cash on Facebook Marketplace. Vinted is also a great place to sell unwanted clothes, but be aware that you won’t receive the money until the buyer actually receives the item, but it’s worth bearing in mind for times when you’re not desperately short of money.

Can you get an advance on your wages?

If you’re employed, then it’s worth asking your employer if you can get an advance on your wages in order to buy food. Your employer isn’t going to want to do this regularly, but if you explain your situation then they may be happy to help you out.

Try a side hustle

I’m a big believer in doing side hustles to make more money. It’s something I started doing back in 2009 when both myself and my husband were made redundant from our jobs and I was pregnant with our daughter. I had never worried about redundancy before, but we both lost our jobs (from two completely separate companies) about a month before Christmas. Since then, I’ve always had a side hustle on the go. For me, it was always blogging until that actually took over from my main job and I now blog full-time. But you can also try things like matched betting or mystery shopping. I’ve got a list of 101 side hustles that you can take a look at to see what might work for you.

Speak out – ask for help

Food prices are shooting up at the moment, and we are all feeling the pinch. So there is absolutely no need to feel ashamed that you’re struggling. In fact, if you speak out, you’ll probably find that you’re not the only one to be struggling to put food on the table right now.

If you can, speak to your family or friends about your struggles. You will probably find that they really want to help out. You don’t need to ask for any money, but you could ask if they have any tins in the cupboard that they’re just not going to use up.

As well as being able to help you feed your family, sharing your problems is far better than bottling them up. It’s always a good idea to have somebody to talk to when you’re going through tough times so don’t feel like you have to suffer alone, and don’t be embarrassed about needing a little help.

Where to find free food if you have no money for food

There are a few places you can turn to if you have no money for food. Some will be able to give you free food, whilst others may just want a small amount of money in return for a large bag of food.

Food banks are wonderful places for those who don’t have enough money to put food on the table, and there are lots of them throughout the country. The Trussell Trust is a charity that runs food banks across the country. You can find your nearest food bank here.

As well as The Trussell Trust, there are also other organisations offering free food for people struggling. You can often find the details of these organisations on your local Facebook group, but you can also ask your Health Visitor, Citizens Advice Service, or Social Worker.

As well as food, you can also get other household items from foodbanks such as health and beauty products, cleaning products and sanitary items.

How to get a foodbank referral

Sadly, you usually can’t just turn up at a food bank. They need to make sure that their supplies are going to the people who need it most. So, you will usually need a foodbank referral. You can get a referral by speaking to:

• Your local Sure Start Children’s Centre
• School
• Your GP
• Health Visitor/Health Centre
• Job Centre

Once you have been referred, you will receive a food voucher which you can then take to the food bank in return for food and other supplies.

Olio

Olio is an app where people can share any spare food they have so that others can use it up rather than it ending up in the bin.

Olio is used by individuals and large supermarkets. You can often get bakery items on there which have a short shelf live but they can easily be frozen and used up as and when you need it.

I live in a really small town, and usually these kinds of apps don’t get used too much. But our local Tesco put items on Olio every day, as well as individuals who haven’t had chance to use things up and want them to go to somebody who needs them.

What to do if you have no money for food and still have bills to pay

With energy bills shooting sky high at the moment, it’s not just food that families are struggling to afford. So what can you do if you’re also struggling to pay your bills. Not being able to pay your bills is a scary situation to find yourself in, but it’s important to face the problem head on.

First of all, prioritise your bills. The first things to pay are the bills that keep a roof over your head. So this will be your rent/mortgage as well as any loan secured on your property and your council tax. Once those bills are paid, you can then move on to things like your energy bills and water bills. Take a look at this post for more detail on what to do if you can’t afford to pay your bills.

As much as the credit card companies may chase you for payment, credit cards and loans aren’t priority bills unless they are secured against your property.

If you expect your situation to improve in the months to come, then you could speak to your mortgage provider about temporarily reducing your mortgage payments. This is something that we did when we both lost our jobs and it really eased the pressure until we were working again. Just be aware that lowering your mortgage payments will have an impact on the total amount you repay, so make sure you’re clear on exactly what you’re getting into.

Make sure you are receiving any benefits you’re entitled to

The benefits system in the UK is there to help people when they need it most. Make sure that you are receiving everything that you should be. Here are just a few things you could be entitled to:

• Carers Allowance.
• Child Benefit.
• Child Tax Credit.
• Council Tax Support/Reduction.
• Employment and Support Allowance
• Housing Benefit.
• Income Support.

You can use the government benefit calculator to see what you could or should be receiving.

What NOT to do if you have no money for food

First of all, try not to panic. You do have options to get food on the table quickly even if at first it doesn’t seem as though you do.

Avoid getting into debt in order to put food on the table. Don’t be tempted to take out a high-interest payday loan or stick it on the credit card. In the long run, this is just going to exacerbate the problem and lead you into an expensive cycle of borrowing and never paying it off.

Where to get help if debt is an issue

Debt is a huge issue and with things like electricity bills rocketing in price, this is only likely to get worse. If you are in debt and you’re struggling to get yourself out of it, then now is the time to get some proper debt advice.

Avoid any companies that charge you a fee to help you to manage your debt. Instead, speak to a debt charity such as Stepchange who will be able to help you to work out the best course of action for your individual circumstances without charging you a fee. They will even speak to your creditors for you and tell you what you need to prioritise. Just be sure to include every debt you have, including anything such as mortgage arrears which you may already have made an agreement to clear. Stepchange will help you to clear all your debts in a fair manner and can often stop any extra interest being charged which means you’ll clear your debt quicker and pay less overall.

Things will get better

If you tackle the issue head on, then things can only get better. But you do need to face up to your problems and deal with them head on rather than burying your head in the sand.