Trends in food and material assistance in Tampere, Finland: A survey

Abstract

Despite Finland’s constitutional guarantee of social security (Finland’s Constitution, 1999), welfare provisions have weakened since the 1990s recession (Hänninen et al., 2008) and current reforms and legislative changes to social security may further exacerbate poverty (Kuivalainen, 2010; Mukkila et al., 2022; Statistics Finland, 2025b). This raises concerns about alignment with constitutional obligations (Salonen et al. 2018), as current development may increase reliance on civil society organisations for food assistance.

Food insecurity refers to limited economic, social, or physical access to sufficient, safe, and nutritious food (Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations [FAO], 2012). According to FAO (2025a), the prevalence of moderate food insecurity across different parts of Europe ranged between 6.1% and 10.8% in 2023. Among food assistance recipients, however, food insecurity concerns over 70% (Carrillo-Álvarez, 2023).

Food and material assistance mean actions taken by governments, civil society organisations, faith-based organisations and private actors to provide free food to individuals who cannot otherwise afford it. As a practice, food assistance highlights the intersection of typically distinct national policy domains, including social policy, agriculture policy, trade policy, and environmental policy. (Silvasti, 2015.) Food assistance includes food parcels, free meals, food vouchers and payment cards. In Finland, payment cards represent a new form of aid delivered as part of the food and material assistance practice, and they can be used for buying food and other necessities. (Finnish Red Cross, 2023.)

This study aims to characterize the recipients of food and material assistance in a form of payment cards from the Finnish Red Cross in Tampere Finland in 2024, and to analyse trends in reasons for applying for food and material assistance across seven distribution events.

The data were self-reported collected from individuals receiving European Union’s Social Fund plus funded payment cards from Red Cross in Tampere, Finland. The sample was collected between January 2024 and November 2024. In total the data consists of details from seven visits and approximately 450 individuals per each visit. The data were entered on Excel sheet and further imported to SPSS program. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics, cross-tabulation and multivariate logistic regression analysis.

The total number of payment card recipients was 3099. Most were female (assumed or reported), between the age 30-65, and from immigrant background (up to 70.6%). The main reasons for accessing food and material assistance were unemployment, student status, low-income and disability with fluctuations within the year 2024. Analyses revealed persistent differences: men more frequently reported unemployment, immigrants were more likely to report student status but less likely to report disability, and older adults were most likely to report disability or low income. These patterns were consistent across all analytical approaches.

In conclusion, the current social policy analysis highlights concerns about the capacity of unemployed, students, and other disadvantaged groups to manage with reduced income support. Recent and planned social security reforms raise public healthcare costs, and older adults and people with disabilities may face an increased risk of poverty, particularly given their greater reliance on public health services. (Ministry of Social Affairs and Health Finland, 2024a). The results of this thesis indicate vulnerability across all age groups, especially among students, elderly and disabled and unemployed. A significant association between student and immigrant status was identified, which has not been documented in previous research related to food assistance.

Finally, it should be noted that a one-year observation period is insufficient to assess long-term or permanent changes; however, it does provide an indication of emerging trends. The study has several limitations, and more precise analyses incorporating longer follow-up periods and data from multiple cities would be necessary to draw more robust conclusions. The growing need for food and material assistance cannot be ignored, and this raises the question of whether such assistance should become more formal component of the social security system. When formal societal support mechanisms, such as social security benefits, are insufficient or fail, food assistance often becomes one of the most visible and accessible forms of support.