Funding bid as food relief demand surges

Extraordinary demand for food relief from financially stressed workers hit with surging food and energy prices and interest rate increases.

Foodbank Australia chief executive Brianna Casey.

The national food relief sector is seeking $45m in federal funding as it faces extraordinary demand from financially stressed workers hit with surging food and energy prices and 10 consecutive interest rate increases.

Foodbank Australia chief executive Brianna Casey said “you don’t need to be a Rhodes Scholar” to work out what happens when there is a jump in food and energy prices, interest rate rises and wages that are stagnating or failing to keep pace with the rising cost of living.

“I think what’s been lost in the discussion that we’re having about these increased interest rates is what that looks like inside the family home,” she said.

“Behind every number that we hear reported, whether it be around interest rate decisions or inflation or GDP, behind every number is a human face and a human story.

“These are the parents who are sending their children to school with empty tummies because they can’t find anything to feed them. These are the elderly who do not have a single social interaction in their week because they can’t offer a neighbour or a friend a cup of tea and a biscuit. These are the real-life consequences of these decisions.”

In a pre-budget submission, Foodbank, which assists more than one million per month, along with OzHarvest and SecondBite, says annual federal funding of $45m is required to ensure food relief is available to those experiencing food insecurity.