Food poverty and informal network support in a changing Portuguese rural area

Abstract

Different representations of the "countryside" coexist in contemporary Portugal, from idyllic depictions to portrayals of emptiness and loneliness. Rural contexts close to urban areas are assumed to have informal support networks that can alleviate poverty and exclusion when institutional support fails. The incidence and intensity of food poverty are presumed to be lessened by proximity to food production sites and land ownership. In this paper, we aim to analyse how living in an intermediate area shapes the experience of food poverty. We draw on qualitative case studies of low-income families living in between a predominantly rural and a predominantly urban territory in Portugal, which has been through a process of restructuring of its rural territory since the second half of the 20 th century. Paying attention to the specificities of this intermediate context, including the availability of formal support, we will investigate to what extent informal support networks alleviate food poverty for these families. Our discussion adds to the scientific debate on food poverty and its links to social networks in intermediate areas previously embedded in predominantly rural territories. We also discuss the highly gendered nature of informal support and its significance for women enduring food poverty.