Trussell Trust hands out record number of food parcels during pandemic
Fiona Simpson
Thursday, April 22, 2021
The Trussell Trust has handed almost one million food parcels to children over the course of the pandemic - an increase of more than a third on the previous year, the charity has said.
Overall, since the first Covid-19 lockdown was introduced in March last year, 2.5 million emergency food parcels have been given to people across the UK.
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This is an increase of 33 per cent on the previous year and 128 per cent compared with levels in 2014/15, the charity’s latest figures show.
The Trussell Trust has said staff and volunteers handed out “record numbers” of parcels during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Just under one million parcels were given to children - 38 per cent more than the previous year and 135 per cent more than in 2014/15.
Across 2020/21, despite making up just 20 per cent of the UK population, 39 per cent of parcels went to children aged 0-16.
Meanwhile, younger working-aged people were also more at risk of using foodbanks.
“Close to two in three (62 per cent) of people referred to food banks in June or July were aged 25-44, up from 53 per cent in early 2020, and significantly higher than the UK population (33 cent),” the report states.
The number of non-EU citizens requiring support from food banks also increased from seven per cent in early 2020 to 18 per cent by the summer of 2020.
Research manager at the charity, Tom Weekes, said: “Core to the issue is a fundamental lack of income – 94 per cent of people referred to food banks are destitute meaning their income is not sufficient to afford the absolute essentials. This cannot be solved by simply supporting people with emergency food.”
The charity is calling on the government and local election candidates to commit to a plan to reduce poverty caused by the pandemic, including making the £20 Universal Credit uplift permanent.
Weekes added: “We cannot allow emergency food to become part of the fabric of our communities. When one person goes hungry, our whole society is weaker. It’s time to build a hunger free future – a more dignified and just society where everyone has enough money for the essentials. Now is the time for action.”
