I'm not judgmental, but I've spent a lot of time in poor communities, and I find it quite hard to talk about modern-day poverty
TV chef Jamie said he finds its bewildering that some families from poor communities would choose to eat ‘chips and cheese out of Styrofoam containers’ while spending money on a ‘massive f***king TV.’
The 38 year-old made the comments in an interview about his next TV project, Jamie's Money Saving Meals, which he hopes will encourage people on modest incomes to eat healthily.
‘I'm not judgmental, but I've spent a lot of time in poor communities, and I find it quite hard to talk about modern-day poverty,’ he said.
‘You might remember that scene in [his previous TV show] Ministry of Food, with the mum and the kid eating chips and cheese out of Styrofoam containers, and behind them is a massive f***king TV. It just didn't weigh up.’
Dad-of-four Jamie claimed that the majority of poor families in Britain are buying expensive, unhealthy ready meals.
‘The fascinating thing for me is that seven times out of 10, the poorest families in this country choose the most expensive way to hydrate and feed their families. The ready meals, the convenience foods,’ he said.
Jamie, who has campaigned for improved diets since his TV show ‘Jamie’s School Dinners’ in 2005, said the UK has a lot to learn from Italy and Spain about buying fresh produce and eating on a budget.
‘I meet people who say, “You don’t understand what it’s like”, he said.
‘I want to hug them and teleport them to the Sicilian street cleaner who has 25 mussels, ten cherry tomatoes and a packet of spaghetti for 60p, and knocks out the most amazing pasta’
Jamie added that some of the best food in the world comes from areas where people are financially challenged - citing affordable ingredients such as ‘cheap cuts of meat’ and ‘leftover stale bread.’
Imran Hussain, head of policy at the Child Poverty Action Group, said: ‘Jamie Oliver is right to say that healthy food doesn't always have to be expensive … but for many families it's low income which gets in the way of healthy eating.’
Imran added: ‘As official statistics show, parents of poor children are much less likely to be able to afford fresh fruit for their children. We also know from the evidence that as the incomes of poor families rise, they spend more on things like healthy food and children's clothes.’