Scarlett Johansson reveals welfare struggles growing up

Scarlett Johansson has revealed her welfare struggles growing up. Photo/YouTube

Scarlett Johansson's family relied on "public assistance" for food.

The Avengers: Age of Ultron actress - who has four siblings - has made an appeal to end hunger in America and drew on her own experiences in a public service announcement to raise awareness of the issue.

She said: "My family grew up relying on public assistance to help provide meals for our family.

"Child hunger in America is a real and often overlooked problem, but one that together, we can fix.

"The are 16 million children struggling with hunger in America. That's one in five daughters, sons, neighbours and classmates who don't know where their next meal is coming from, yet billions of pounds of good food go to waste every year. It's time we do something about it.

"Together we can solve hunger. Together we're feeding America."

The 30-year-old actress' Avengers co-star Jeremy Renner - who has a two-year-old daughter, Ava, with estranged wife Sonni Pacheco - has also recorded a PSA for charity Feeding America.

He said in his clip: "As an American, it's hard to hear that we have a serious hunger issue in our country. And as a parent it's even harder to hear one in five of our kids struggles with hunger, especially when billions of pounds of good food are wasted every year."

Johansson - who has seven-month-old daughter Rose with husband Romain Dauriac - has previously admitted her upbringing in Manhattan's Greenwich Village saw her family have "little money".

- Bang! Showbiz