Building Cultural and Social Capital at a Food Aid Project in South-West London

Food aid projects aimed at reducing food waste play a key role in meeting the needs of those vulnerable
and impacted by social and economic upheaval. However, in practice, there is an assumption that those
facing food insecurity exhibit certain traits including access to benefits, social housing, and
unemployment prevalence. Yet, realistically, contemporary research demonstrates an emergence of
diverse sociodemographic food deprivation, whereby food destitution no longer impacts only those
living in statistically deprived areas of the United Kingdom.

A pragmatic patchwork ethnography study was undertaken investigating the lived experiences of
visitors and volunteers to a food surplus project in South-West London, an area additionally
characterised by, and perceived as affluent.
Results, via thematic analysis and a-priori theming highlighted the dynamics, ethnicity, and cultures of
volunteers and visitors which enabled improved environments conducive to improved health,
additionally reflecting the diversity of the community. Consequently, improved opportunities for healthy
eating and dignified access to food were discovered, drawing on Bourdieu’s’ social and cultural capital
to create inclusive communities counterbalancing the stigmatism often directed to those in food poverty.