Foodbank users inspired by Cambridgeshire cook Mandy
Her ways of making meals 'more interesting' could also tackle hunger in the county
A woman who prepares hot meals for foodbank users in Cambridgeshire hopes inspiring people in need to cook from home can help tackle hunger issues.
Research from the Trussell Trust, which runs Ely Foodbank, found 11.3 million people in the UK faced hunger last year due to a lack of money.
The Ely Foodbank group is part of the Trussell Trust, which gave out a record of nearly three million emergency food parcels in the year to March compared to 12 months before.
Vegan food blogger and cook Mandy Mazliah helps out at the foodbank.
“I’ve been at Ely Foodbank for a couple of months but have cooked in other places for the last three, four years,” she said.
“I love coming here.
Hunger stats 'just the tip of the iceberg'
“I cook a lot of home and have cooked professionally and it’s great to be able to share those skills with people that are in need and maybe haven’t learnt to cook before.”
The latest findings were described by the Trussell Trust - which runs more than 1,200 food bank centres across its network covering around two thirds of the food banks in the UK - as "just the tip of the iceberg".
As well as a bag of tinned ingredients, those who use Ely Foodbank go home with recipe cards so they can make meals at home.
And by having the food available, Mandy feels those in need can make meal times more interesting and tackle hunger at the same time.
Foodbank can help make meals 'more exciting'
“I think there’s a variety of ways in which it’s good to cook a hot meal for people,” she said.
“It’s giving them that food so they’ve got something to eat and they can take it home and share it with their family members if they want to.
“I’s about helping people understand easy, simple ways they can make that food more exciting when they cook with them at home.”