Foodbank Christmas 2021

This Christmas more than 74,800 South Aussie kids may experience hunger. Their families wish is simply to have enough food this Christmas.

 

Lisa and her partner James hit tough times when Lisa fell pregnant with their second child and James lost his job. Despite James finding part-time work, their circumstances and bills left very little funds for food. 

“We are a family of four, two adults and two kids. We pay $315 a week in rent and $150 a week for bills including water, electricity and gas. We struggle week to week … REALLY struggle.”

The 2021 Foodbank Hunger Report details that one in six adults haven’t had enough food to eat and more than 74,800 children have experienced hunger in South Australia in the last 12 months. There are too many empty plates and South Australian families going hungry.

The pandemic continues to deliver challenges that are exacerbating pre-existing issues in our community. In the last 12 months, 32% of South Australians experiencing food insecurity said it was due to having to pay rent or mortgage repayments and a staggering 37% attributed their food insecurity to unexpected expenses or large bills.

“Paying rent on top of our bills only left us with $30 to $40 a week for food. We found it really hard to afford enough food to feed our family.”

In addition to those who were already struggling before COVID-19, the pandemic has caused others to struggle financially for the first time. In fact, more than two in five of the last year’s food insecure South Australians (40%) had never experienced this before.

“Our family has just had a little run of bad luck. It will change soon I hope.”

Foodbank provides food relief to more than 135,000 South Australians each month. One third of these are children.

With so many South Australians going hungry, the reality is we need to do more. By providing food relief and taking some of the financial stress away from families it helps them to meet the other financial needs of their children and of the family.

“Foodbank has taken away the bulk of the stress financially for us as a family this Christmas.”

By giving $156 this Christmas, you will make a difference in the lives of families like Lisa and James’ by providing enough food for an entire month.

“Foodbank is a major player in saving lives. They have definitely saved ours and we will be eternally grateful to them for their support.”

Foodbank is here for South Australians in their time of need. It is thanks to you that Foodbank can supply food and essentials to families like Lisa and James’, removing some financial pressure.

By giving a $156 tax deductible donation before 18 December you will help to put meals on the table for a month for a family  in need this Christmas. 

Please choose to donate to Foodbank this Christmas and help us to continue our mission to end hunger in South Australia.