Almost 9pct of Europeans struggle to afford a proper meal; in Romania, the rate is 16.3pct

In 2024, 8.5% of the EU population were unable to afford a meal containing meat, fish or a vegetarian equivalent every second day, 1.0 percentage point (pp) lower than in 2023 (9.5%), according to the Eurostat data published on Thursday.

Among the member state, the highest share of people at risk of poverty unable to afford a proper meal was recorded in Bulgaria (18.7%), Slovakia (17.1%) and Romania (16.3%), decline from 23.3% in 2023. At the opposite end are Cyprus and Portugal, where only 1.2%, 2.5% of the total population, respectively cannot afford a proper meal, agerpres reports.

Among people at risk of poverty, the share of people in the EU who could not afford a proper meal was 19.4% in 2024, down nearly three percentage points from 22.3% in 2023.

This difference between the total population and those at risk of poverty, in terms of the capacity to afford a proper meal, is also evident across EU member states. In 2024, the highest share of people at risk of poverty unable to afford a proper meal was recorded in Slovakia (39.8%), followed by Bulgaria (37.7%), Hungary (37.3%), Greece (34.6%) and Romania (27.7%). However, in Romania, the share dropped significantly, from 43% in 2022 to 27.7% in 2024. At the opposite end were Cyprus and Portugal (both with 5.1%).

The capacity to afford a proper meal is part of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Goal 2 - Zero Hunger aims to create a world free of hunger by 2030.