Foodbank at crisis point as cost-of-living crisis impacts middle class

Victorian middle class families are increasingly reaching out for help to fill their fridges and cupboards with food as the cost-of-living crisis deepens, pushing charities to crisis point.

A leading food charity has warned it is at crisis point, with demand on the service now greater than it was during the pandemic, the millennium drought, and fires and floods.

Foodbank chief executive Dave McNamara said the nation’s cost-of-living crisis had affected every corner of the state and was now “attacking the middle class”.

“We are seeing more and more working families turning up for assistance,” he said.

“There’s not really one part that’s not feeling this. We used to say it’s people on the street, it’s people in your street now.

“What were the bastions of the middle class are now the suburbs that we’re seeing people turning up for assistance from.”

Prior to the pandemic, the charity was feeding about 30,000 Victorians every day, but that figure has now almost doubled to 57,000.

Shelves of food at Foodbank, which is now at crisis point due to demand. Picture: David Crosling

Foodbank chief executive David Mcnamara in January this year. Picture: Luis Enrique Ascui

Foodbank also supplied an extra 2.4 million meals to 1000 Victorian schools in the past year to cope with a 40 per cent increase in the number of kids turning up to school hungry.

It comes as food and grocery prices at Woolworths and Coles surged by a whopping 9.6 per cent in April as interest rates increased for the 12th time in the past year.

Common grocery items including Vegemite, peanut butter and yoghurt soared higher in cost compared to overall inflation of 7 per cent.

Meat prices have also soared in the past year, forcing cash-strapped families to give up steaks in favour of snags and burgers.

In last month’s state budget, the government dedicated $69.5m to continue the School Breakfast Club program, which has provided more than 30 million free breakfasts and lunches to students since 2016.

But Mr McNamara said many families were still reaching out to the service seeking enough food to last a week.

“Just at one of our markets at Manor Lakes last week (we were) talking to a young mum with four kids. Her husband was laid off, is retraining as a mature age plumber and suddenly the family just can’t afford to feed the whole family and so they’re turning up for assistance for the first time in their life,” he said.

Mr McNamara said some charities are recording a 300 per cent increase in the number of families turning up for help.

“I’ve been with Foodbank for 15 years through (the) Millennium drought, Black Saturday, Black Summer, floods, pandemic, and this is the worst I’ve seen in 15 years,” he said.

“When you look at an organisation that’s got a history going back 93 years and we’ve grown nearly 50 per cent in two years, I guess that’s an indicator of the disadvantage and stress that families are under.”

This year alone, Foodbank has distributed 27 per cent more than the last financial year.

The greatest driver of demand is from people sourcing good quality fruit and vegetables.

“Just like every other family out there, we’re struggling as well,” he said.

“I can’t see the disadvantage plateauing. I don’t see this dropping for at least another year or so.”