Lincoln's simple answer to tackling foodbank shortages; food businesses
We're hearing that with more mouths to feed than ever, foodbanks across the county are suffering from shortages, that could be resolved with surplus food in stores.
There's a plea for any food businesses in Lincolnshire to sign surplus food over to foodbanks as shortages continue to grow,
It comes after a report found 35% of the people being fed in Lincoln are children, with more multiple persons households coming forward for help.
The two largest food bank networks in Lincoln provided almost 47,000 meals in the last three months.
At the same time, there has been a collapse in the amount of food being donated: “surplus food” stocks are down, particularly chilled and fresh produce.
Laura Stratford is a Co-Ordinator at the Greater Lincolnshire Food Partnership…
"So traditionally, food banks are intended to provide emergency food support. So, what will typically happen is somebody will get referred to a food bank, they'll get food parcels for three days, and they'll receive that on one or two or maybe 3 occasions, and that will be a stop-gap for an emergency that they're in.
"If they become homeless, if they're waiting for Universal Credit, if something's happened and they're in an emergency, that's the support they get. But what's happened over the last few years is that people are getting referred, and referred, and referred, and referred.
"It's not about creating dependence but with the cost of living crisis, or rather, another way to look at it, is the inequality crisis, and people day-after-day not being able to afford the basics, like putting food on the table."
She added that:
"We will have a body, don't we? We all need to be nourished properly every single day, and parts of the the inequality is not just economic, it's health as well. So people can end up on a cheap diet, that is a poor quality diet very often."
The report, by the Greater Lincolnshire Food partnership found that:
- Referrals to Lincoln food banks have increased by 45% compared to this time last year
- In March, 1 out of every 172 households in the City received an emergency food parcel
- Almost 47,000 meals have been provided by food banks in Lincoln since the new year
- Referrals have doubled over the past two years – since a previous high during the COVID Pandemic
- The largest growth is in multiple person households, with children now accounting for 35% of all people supported by food banks in the City
- Supply of food donations is not keeping pace with the increase in demand
- FareShare, a charity that collects surplus food stock from farms, manufacturers, distributors and retailers, has seen a significant decrease in the amount of surplus food available: a 27% reduction since December.
Finally Laura said:
"I think if we continue with business as usual, we're gonna see further food shortages.
"It is worrying in that context that the donations of surplus food are falling. Because that community demand for groceries is real, and the system is still relying on the surplus food, and that's the problem that we're seeing nationally. It's not just in Lincolnshire."
To access support from a food bank requires a referral from a school, certain charities, GPs, local authority, social worker or church.