Food insecurity is a crucial public health challenge in Australia, especially amongst many migrant and refugee communities.(1) Despite the existence of gold standard monitoring tools, such as the Household Food Security Survey Module (HFSSM)(2), food insecurity is not systematically monitored across migrant and refugee communities nor is it clear whether current monitoring, such as the HFSSM, captures the cultural dimensions of food insecurity. This study aims to fill this gap by exploring the food insecurity experiences of African migrant and refugee communities in Melbourne and efficacy of the HFSSM . Four focus groups will be conducted between July and October 2025 and examined through qualitative descriptive methodology and iterative thematic analysis. Initial results highlight access to traditional foods as essential for fostering a sense of belonging and cultural identity upon migration, fostering participants’ feelings of inclusion and security in Australia. Participants discussed major barriers to accessing cultural foods such as no culturally appropriate food items available in mainstream food retailers, few African grocery stores, and limited transportation options. Participants reported budgeting and planning travel in order to access cultural foods. Diets were reported to shift post-migration to being less culturally appropriate; one participant reduced meat significantly due to poor quality options in mainstream stores. Discussing the HFSSM specifically, the module was reported to include irrelevant and repetitious questions which did not capture their experiences as migrants. Participants identified these as barriers. While availability, quality and variety of foods, travel considerations, and financial prioritisation and budgeting required to access culturally appropriate foods were major concerns for accessing cultural food, participants reported these factors to be largely missing from the HFSSM. Participants highlighted need for the HFSSM to consider cultural food availability, as a key factor in dietary satisfaction and nutrition. For example, when discussing the concept of a ‘balanced meal’ participants expressed confusion over its definition, noting that cultural interpretations often diverged from Western nutritional standards and food items. Improving survey design to incorporate culturally relevant definitions of food and nutrition security, including questions on how food purchases are prioritised, access to and quality of cultural foods, and avoiding repetitive question items could improve the relevance and effectiveness of the HFSSM for African migrant communities. Tailoring survey questions to local realities is important to collect context specific information about food insecurity experiences across multicultural communities. Such data is necessary to advance inclusive and culturally sensitive food security policy and practice and will help to better address food insecurity in Australia.