9 December 2020
Commenting on publication of a report into UK destitution by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, Lindsay Boswell, FareShare CEO, said: “This has been an extraordinarily difficult year for the vulnerable children and families that rely on FareShare for food, and we are now facing an even tougher winter. FareShare has maintained a full operation throughout the year, to provide over 2 million meals per week to the charitable communities and their clients who need our help – that’s more than double the amount of food distributed this time last year.
“There are of course many reasons for food poverty, and experts such as JRF are making clear calls for progress in welfare provision.”
Lindsay Boswell, FareShare CEO
“Many of the charities we supply also tell us that demand for food is likely to remain high through the winter, and they do not anticipate the numbers of people coming to them for food to drop.
“Today's report by the JRF says some of the highest levels of destitution in the UK can be found in the North East, London and the North West. We know through the FareShare network that demand for food is particularly strong in these areas.
“There are of course many reasons for food poverty, and experts such as JRF are making clear calls for progress in welfare provision. While saving food from going to waste isn't a silver bullet answer to the problem, food equivalent to 1.3bn meals is thrown away every year before it reaches our homes, while 8 million UK citizens go hungry. That food would provide the equivalent of 162 meals per year to all 8 million people currently trapped in food insecurity. We want to see joint action to stop this perfectly good food from going to waste, and we have a proven mechanism to do this which is highly cost effective.”
