Watford Foodbank has been forced to take food parcels “back to basics” as rising food prices hit donations.
A typical Watford Foodbank food parcel contains cereal, pasta, rice, pasta sauce, beans, tinned meat, tinned vegetables, tea coffee, tinned fruit, biscuits, soup, milk, and toiletries, for three days.
However, the foodbank, which usually gives out 10 tonnes of food each month, has been forced to issue an “urgent plea” for more donations and reduce what is given out.
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Andrew Tranter, the manager of Watford Foodbank, said: “This month for the first month we’ve gone down to nine tonnes going out.
“Ten tonnes of food a month is quite common for us for over a year, we are a tonne of food short.
“We just have a few treats boxes for children left. I looked, and we had just one box of chocolates to give.
“When we have a lot of extras, we like to give them out but when we don’t have them, we can’t.
“We have had to go back to basics.”
Volunteers have also needed to go out and buy more items, as they are less able to rely on donations.
The foodbank first started noticing a problem in February when food prices started to rise, and then noticed they were “suddenly” two tonnes short on expected donations.
Mr Tranter added: “You don’t have to be an economist to see what is happening.
“Tinned food that used to be £1 might be £1.25, that’s not a small increase, that’s 25%.
“I have spoken to people who say they can’t sleep thinking about how they are going to pay for food and energy.
“I don’t think people are unaware, but they may not be aware how many people are unable to have two pennies to rub together.
“We keep very strict records; these are hard facts. We are not sure where this is going to end.”
Andrew added that harvest season and Christmas are stronger times for donations so the charity is hopeful that, while it currently has empty shelves, it can restock with support from schools and churches.
He added that donation points at local supermarkets have been vital, with Watford shoppers donating tonnes of food each month.
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