This chapter discusses the socio-economic characteristics of poverty with an evaluation of the food consumption patterns of the poor, primarily because the cost of foodstuffs absorbed the major part of family income. In part, this stemmed from the poor quality of the housing that they were compelled to occupy, for some of the accommodation reserved for the unskilled sectors of the working classes lacked efficient coal ovens or kitchen ranges. In short, dearer food denoted either the reliance of the poor upon the credit facilities of local shopkeepers and their practice of acquiring their supplies in small quantities, or the pernicious influence of the truck system. For one thing national data relating to food consumption patterns become more profuse. But what is of greater importance, the post-1870 era was distinguished by a more systematic approach to the study of the relationship between food and social class.