3 December

This Christmas food bank usage is set to reach record levels. Many food banks will be helping families who will not be able to afford a Christmas dinner this year. When you’re doing your Christmas food shopping, please consider buying some extra festive treats to donate to your local food bank.

Over course of 2016/2017, the Trussell Trust gave out 106,898 food parcels to people across the South East of England. Nationwide, there has been a 47% increase in the number of 3 day emergency supplies, and recent statistics show a 13% rise in foodbank use during the first 6 months of the financial year.

But this year, foodbanks are expecting their busiest Christmas ever. The roll out our

If the Government force us to continue on our current track, food poverty is only going to get worse. The botched roll out of universal credit has hit many families finances hard, and this is only going to worsen if and when we Brexit. The fall in the value of the Pound after the vote to leave the EU has already foresee up inflation, hitting the cost of food especially hard. Research from the Food Foundation has revealed that due to the triple impact of exchange rates, labour costs and tariffs, up to an additional £158 a year could be added to the amount that a family of four spend on fruit and veg through Brexit.

The UK already has the second highest rates of food insecurity in Europe. Yet again, the poorest families will be hardest hit, as they already spend the biggest proportion of their household budget on food.

If you can donate to a food bank this Christmas, I urge you to do so. The Trussell Trust have listed what items they include in their 3 day emergency food parcel, the contents of which you can find here.

 A few toiletries, or some extra festive treats wouldn’t go amiss too.