Food insecurity in urban New Zealand. The case of the Kopa family

Abstract

Poverty brings insecurity and chaos into the home, forcing families to develop strategies for navigating the difficulties of food insecurity. We document how one household, the Kopa family, responds to poverty in ad hoc and agentive ways that assist and hinder their attempts to keep themselves fed. This study is based on a series of eight qualitative interviews with family members, including photo-elicitation and go-along techniques, as well as extensive field notes from more casual research interactions such as shared meals. Our analysis demonstrates how food insecurity shapes this family’s culturally patterned social practices surrounding the procurement, consumption, and sharing of food.