More Than Half of Japan's Ashinaga Scholarship Families Struggle to Afford Food

Food and heating compete for shrinking family budgets

More than half of the guardians responding to a survey linked to Japan's Ashinaga Foundation said they had been unable to afford necessary food at some point in the past year. The preliminary findings, drawn from 1,447 online responses collected in August and September, show families raising high school students struggling to pay for meals while keeping up with rent, utilities and taxes.

The Tokyo based foundation surveyed guardians connected to 3,487 scholarship households. Among those responding online, 12.4 percent said they often could not buy the food they needed, 20.6 percent said sometimes, and 21.5 percent said once in a while. Together, those categories amount to 54.5 percent, or more than one in two respondents.

About 33.8 percent also reported falling behind on essential payments, including utilities, rent or taxes, at least once. For families already coping with the loss of a parent or serious hardship affecting a caregiver, higher prices have turned everyday purchases into difficult choices.

Guardians described eating only once a day, cutting spending on clothing and worrying about whether they could afford to heat their homes during winter. Their accounts show how pressure on a household budget can reach several basic needs at the same time: less money for food, fewer clothes and reduced use of heating.

An Ashinaga survey coordinator, who reviewed the findings, called for urgent economic support for families raising children after a parent's death. The coordinator said:

Rising prices are an urgent issue for daily survival for families with children who lost parents. Swift economic measures to address inequality are needed.

As of October 15, 2025, the foundation was preparing a nationwide fundraising campaign beginning on October 18, while its survey analysis continued. The immediate concern for families was how to meet daily needs without sacrificing the education of their children.

Who the survey covers

Ashinaga provides scholarships and emotional care to children who have lost a parent or whose caregivers face severe hardship. Its support extends from primary school through university, combining help with education costs and care for young people managing grief and uncertainty.

The latest findings concern guardians connected to its high school scholarship program. The foundation collected responses online and by post, but the preliminary figures come from the 1,447 online replies. Postal responses are to be included as analysis continues.

The survey describes the experiences of families linked to that program, rather than all households in Japan. Its focus makes it a detailed window into the pressures facing a group with particularly fragile finances.

Food insecurity means having limited or uncertain access to enough food for an active, healthy life. In this survey, guardians were asked about being unable to afford necessary food during the past year. The answers range from occasional shortages to frequent difficulty, showing that the problem varies in intensity across households.

Ashinaga's high school program has shifted toward grants that students do not have to repay. The change is intended to keep debt from determining their education choices. Higher living costs and the move to grants have also increased demand for assistance among families carrying both financial and emotional burdens.

Low wages leave little room for higher prices

A separate Ashinaga survey covering both high school and university students found that more than 90 percent of guardians said their income had failed to keep pace with living costs. Over 70 percent reported annual earnings below about 3 million yen, equivalent to about $20,000.

Only 30.1 percent of guardians in that broader survey were employed full time. Nearly 60 percent worked in nonregular positions, including part time and temporary jobs, and few reported a rise in pay from the previous year.

Nonregular work often comes with lower pay and less stable hours. A guardian whose working hours change may have difficulty knowing how much money will be available next month, even before food and electricity become more expensive.

Households with one caregiver, or a guardian whose earning power is limited, face a higher risk of poverty. They have less room to absorb an unexpected expense or a series of small price increases. Persistent inflation, alongside weak wage growth for many workers in part time and nonregular jobs, deepens that pressure.

Families often put rent and expenses connected to tuition first, leaving less money for meals and utilities. When rice, noodles, cooking oil and electricity all cost more, the remaining budget can disappear quickly. A price increase that seems small for one item becomes harder to manage when it applies across the weekly shopping basket.

Missed bills can deepen the squeeze

About one in three respondents to the latest high school survey had missed or delayed a payment for a basic bill during the past year. Falling behind can create further costs: unpaid utility bills may bring fees or service interruptions, late rent can put housing at risk, and tax arrears can lead to penalties that last across several months.

Guardians described cutting food first, then clothing and personal care, and eventually reducing utility use. Some reported wearing minimal clothing to limit spending. Others spoke of health problems linked to poor diet or exposure to heat and cold, including anemia and illness associated with hot weather.

Teenagers can feel these pressures even when caregivers try to shield them. Students may eat less, avoid asking for school supplies or leave club activities to make time for paid work. Each decision reduces an immediate expense or brings in money, but also changes the student's daily life.

Help can be difficult to reach when a caregiver is already balancing work and childcare. Local welfare programs, school fee waivers and nonprofit assistance may require documents, applications and repeated visits to government offices. Irregular work schedules can make those tasks harder to complete.

Awareness also matters. A family needs to know that support exists before it can apply, and a guardian short of time may struggle to navigate several programs at once. The survey's accounts connect the need for money with the practical difficulty of obtaining help.

Why everyday essentials have become more expensive

Japan's recent price increases reflect several overlapping pressures. A weaker yen has raised the cost of imported energy, food ingredients and raw materials. When the currency buys less abroad, goods purchased from other countries become more expensive in yen.

Global supply chain disruptions and higher freight costs have also pushed up prices, affecting products ranging from cooking oil to school uniforms. These expenses reach households through the prices charged for finished goods.

Inflation in Japan has been lower than in some other countries, but it has persisted compared with the previous decade. Food prices have often risen faster than prices generally. Families with little spare income feel that pressure directly because groceries are a regular expense that cannot simply be postponed.

Electricity and gas have created another strain. International energy prices climbed after 2022, and government subsidies helped soften the largest increases. Many households still faced higher monthly bills despite that assistance.

Winter adds a particular concern for families already limiting utility use. Guardians' anxiety about heating reflects the possibility of lowering indoor temperatures or waiting longer before turning on heaters. Cold homes can affect health and sleep, including for teenagers preparing for examinations.

Hunger and financial stress reach the classroom

Adolescents need sufficient calories and nutrients as they grow. Skipping meals or relying on inexpensive foods with little nutritional value can reduce energy, make concentration harder and increase stress. Poor nutrition over time is linked with worse academic performance, more absences and difficulties with mental health.

Teachers often see the effects in fatigue, reduced classroom participation and greater anxiety among students who are not eating enough. A student arriving tired or hungry has less energy available for lessons, even when they want to keep up.

Paid work can help a household meet urgent expenses. A few hours at a convenience store or restaurant may cover part of a utility bill, but those hours also leave less time for studying and rest. Students face a practical choice between earning money now and protecting the time they need for school.

Club activities can be another casualty. Leaving a club may reduce costs or create time for work, yet it also removes opportunities for friendships, confidence and physical activity. The combined effect of hunger, financial worry and less time outside lessons can narrow a young person's options during years that shape future education and employment choices.

Ashinaga pairs financial help with emotional support because both needs affect students' ability to learn. Counselors and program staff help young people manage grief, set goals and prepare for examinations and career decisions. The foundation has stressed this combination of care and scholarships in Japan and abroad.

Scholarship demand exceeds the money available

Ashinaga received a record 3,487 applications for its high school scholarships in fiscal 2024, about 1.3 times the previous year's total. Rising living costs and the transition to grants that require no repayment appear to have contributed to the increase.

Funding shortages limited the acceptance rate to a record low of 44.1 percent. Many eligible families went without assistance while their household expenses continued to rise.

Applications totaled 3,217 in fiscal 2025. Expanded fundraising lifted the acceptance rate to 58.4 percent, an increase of 14.3 percentage points from fiscal 2024. Even with that improvement, roughly 40 percent of applicants could not receive support because funding ran out.

The figures show progress in the foundation's ability to help, alongside a continuing gap between demand and available money. Fewer applications in fiscal 2025 did not remove the need to turn families away.

The main dates and developments are:

• Fiscal 2024: A record 3,487 high school scholarship applications were received, with 44.1 percent accepted.
• Fiscal 2025: Applications totaled 3,217, and the acceptance rate rose to 58.4 percent after expanded fundraising.
• August and September 2025: Guardians connected to 3,487 scholarship households were surveyed online and by post.
• October 15, 2025: Preliminary findings were based on 1,447 online responses, with postal responses still to be incorporated.
• October 18, 2025: Nationwide street fundraising is scheduled to begin at 136 major stations and busy locations across all 47 prefectures.

Public and private assistance fill different needs

Japan has several forms of support intended to reduce education costs. Public high schools are tuition free, while subsidies help families with low incomes whose children attend private schools. A national scholarship program providing grants has also been introduced for students from households with low incomes.

Many local governments offer fee waivers or emergency allowances for school supplies, transportation and examination fees. School lunch programs provide balanced meals during the school day, helping cushion children against rising food costs.

Private assistance adds another layer. MUFG, one of Japan's major financial groups, funds the Ashinaga MUFG Scholarship, which provides support that students do not have to repay. Its beneficiaries include students pursuing science and medical fields.

Companies and community groups also organize food drives and contribute proceeds to education nonprofits. One manufacturing firm arranged food donations by employees and directed money raised through used books to Ashinaga's scholarship and care programs.

Those efforts extend the reach of assistance and draw attention to urgent needs, while public policy remains necessary to address the scale of the pressure. A scholarship can reduce education costs, food donations can help with meals, and emotional care can support a grieving student. Families may need several kinds of help together.

Practical measures could protect meals and schooling

The survey points to immediate ways to support families while prices remain high. Some measures could be taken by schools and local governments, while others would require central government funding or changes in legislation. Nonprofits and businesses can also adapt assistance to the choices guardians describe.

The proposals address both daily living costs and expenses that can interrupt education:

• Targeted cash assistance for bereaved households during winter to help pay for food and heating.
• Larger budgets for grant scholarships so eligible students are not turned away when applications rise.
• Relief for utility arrears, coordinated with energy providers, to keep electricity and heating available to families with school age children.
• Food support through schools beyond lunch, including breakfast before homeroom and staples to take home during holidays.
• Fee waivers and a central point for assistance with examinations, transport and uniforms, using simpler applications and faster decisions.
• Closer coordination between schools, social workers and welfare offices to identify hunger and unpaid bills early.
• Workplace measures that make guardians' hours and earnings more stable, including predictable schedules and access to benefits.
• Campaigns in which donors match contributions from individuals or companies.

Many of these forms of help already exist in some form and could be expanded or made easier to access without building large new administrative systems. The practical benefit can arrive quickly: a dependable meal, a waived examination fee or a small monthly stipend can help a student continue studying.

For a caregiver juggling uncertain hours and household bills, simpler access matters alongside the amount offered. Combining assistance with food, utilities and school costs can reduce the number of separate problems a family must solve each month.

Fundraising begins across Japan on October 18

Ashinaga plans to start its nationwide street fundraising campaign on October 18 at 136 major train stations and busy locations in all 47 prefectures. Student volunteers and staff will ask passersby for small contributions to fund scholarships and stipends that help teenagers remain in school and meet daily needs.

People unable to donate in person can seek verified online donation channels or support local food banks working with schools and nonprofits. Community assistance remains valuable while funding catches up with demand.

Employers can organize payroll giving or match employee donations during the campaign. Parent teacher groups and alumni networks can help pay for supplies, fare cards or meals for students facing financial hardship.

Neighborhood assistance and policy measures serve different parts of the same need. Donations can help individual families now, while larger scholarship budgets, accessible welfare support and steadier earnings can reduce repeated choices between food, heating and education.

At a Glance

• Among 1,447 online respondents, 54.5 percent reported being unable to afford necessary food at least occasionally during the past year.
• The responses were 12.4 percent often, 20.6 percent sometimes and 21.5 percent once in a while.
• About 33.8 percent had fallen behind on utilities, rent or taxes at least once.
• The preliminary survey covers guardians linked to Ashinaga's high school scholarships; postal responses are still to be included.
• A broader Ashinaga survey found that more than 90 percent of guardians said income had not kept pace with living costs.
• Over 70 percent in that broader survey earned less than about 3 million yen annually, and nearly 60 percent worked in nonregular jobs.
• High school scholarship acceptance rose from 44.1 percent in fiscal 2024 to 58.4 percent in fiscal 2025, but roughly 40 percent of applicants still went without support.
• Street fundraising begins October 18 at 136 locations across all 47 prefectures.
• Proposed responses include cash assistance, utility relief, expanded grants, school food support and simpler access to help with education costs.