Enlarge image
People queue outside a food distribution center in London
Photo: Kirsty O'connor / dpa
Never before have so many people needed food aid: In view of rising consumer prices and growing poverty, the food banks in Great Britain are experiencing the greatest demand in their history.
"This is the busiest time independent food banks have ever experienced in Britain and many are struggling with the growing demand," said Sabine Goodwin, head of the umbrella organization Independent Food Aid Network, the German Press Agency.
According to the Trussell Trust, which owns 1,300 food banks across the UK, more than 1.3 million emergency food parcels have already been distributed from April to September this year - a third more than in the same period last year and a half times the previous figure the pandemic.
In addition, 320,000 people turned to the Tafel for the first time in the first six months.
That is 40 percent more than in the same period in 2021.
"It is becoming clearer than ever that charitable service as an answer to escalating poverty is neither sustainable nor acceptable," Goodwin said.
Rather, people need support payments and wages with which they can pay for food for themselves and their families.
Inflation in Great Britain was recently around eleven percent, limited to food even higher.
The UK economy is in recession and has barely recovered from the pandemic low compared to other countries.
Brexit has drastically reduced trade with the largest market on the doorstep – the European Union.
The conservative British government actually took office at the beginning of the legislative period with the promise of "levelling up" - i.e. adjusting living conditions in all parts of the country upwards.
But little has happened since then: in the north of England in particular, many regions have been left behind and child poverty is high.
The situation has worsened as a result of the war in Ukraine.
Storing and refrigerating donated food is a problem for some Tafel because it limits their capacity to donate.
King Charles III
has made a major donation with one of his foundations, which is intended to fund at least 800 refrigerators and freezers for food banks and similar facilities.
Organizations had previously reported that in recent years food donations around Christmas have sometimes had to be turned down because they could not have been refrigerated.
This contribution is part of the Global Society project
Expand areaWhat is the Global Society project?
Under the title "Global Society", reporters from
Asia, Africa, Latin America and Europe
report on injustices in a globalized world, socio-political challenges and sustainable development.
The reports, analyses, photo series, videos and podcasts appear in a separate section in the foreign section of SPIEGEL.
The project is long-term and is supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF).
A detailed FAQ with questions and answers about the project can be found here.
AreaWhat does the funding look like in concrete terms?open
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) has been supporting the project since 2019 for an initial period of three years with a total of around 2.3 million euros - around 760,000 euros per year.
In 2021, the project was extended by almost three and a half years until spring 2025 under the same conditions.
AreaIs the journalistic content independent of the foundation?open
Yes.
The editorial content is created without the influence of the Gates Foundation.
AreaDo other media also have similar projects?open
Yes.
With the support of the Gates Foundation, major European media outlets such as The Guardian and El País have set up similar sections on their news sites with Global Development and Planeta Futuro respectively.
Did SPIEGEL already have similar projects? open
In recent years, SPIEGEL has already implemented two projects with the European Journalism Center (EJC) and the support of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation: the "OverMorgen Expedition" on global sustainability goals and the journalistic refugee project "The New Arrivals ", within the framework of which several award-winning multimedia reports on the topics of migration and flight have been created.
Expand areaWhere can I find all publications on the Global Society?
The pieces can be found at SPIEGEL on the Global Society topic page.
but
