Tauranga food rescue Good Neighbour. Photo / Supplied
Tauranga Community Foodbank has handed out a record amount of food in the past few weeks, with people's finances drained to stay afloat previous lockdown.
From incomes falling or job losses to bills piling up and hungry kids not benefiting from free school lunches, the need for help to put food on the table is growing - many needing help for the first time.
SociaLink, the umbrella organisation for the Western Bay's social agencies and charities, surveyed social service providers finding food was the key issue in lockdown.
Tauranga Community Foodbank manager Nicki Goodwin said savings used in lockdown last year to get by were gone, and those who had been budgeting "extremely well" were getting behind on their bills.
She said the speed at which demand hit was "surprising", with a record 402 food parcels distributed between the first Thursday of lockdown and last Friday, helping 1314 people.
The foodbank also delivered 98 parcels during this time.
This was 75 per cent more than the same period of lockdown last year, with the parcels containing 5256 days worth of food which would create at least 15,768 meals.
While the move to levels 3 and 2 had settled the demand with many able to go back to work, there is still "a lot of hardship".
"People haven't got the [financial] resilience they had last time, and neither do businesses so it's pretty much an immediate effect as soon as income is jeopardised."
She said many of those needing help were families they had not seen before with kids not getting the lunches at schools on top of them eating more being at home.
However, although some were back at work, it was still another week until they got paid, and the second earner might still not be back for weeks.
Goodwin suspected the hardship would continue as people worked to get back on top of their bills.
Foodbank parcels were originally designed to feed a person or family for four days, however, the parcels being created were now designed to last a week.
The foodbank had been moving towards these larger parcels prior to lockdown due to the rising cost of living, with people needing more to get by.
She said they've needed to buy a huge amount of staples and their supply was good, and thanked the support of the community in both donated goods as well as money.
She said fresh produce and meat were always needed and treats were always welcomed as the non-essential goods were not budgeted for but brightened up the days of parcel recipients.
Good Neighbour, a local food rescue service that supports 72 charities and organisations, had seen the demand for food constantly on the rise since lockdown last year.
Manager Simone Gibson said lockdown had the number of services it supported drop to 55 and many, which Good Neighbour supported part of, were now asked to support a larger portion of an organisation.
The usual two tonnes of food collected and redistributed initially dropped when the city went into lockdown and businesses shut or stocked up, but had since picked up.
She said the amount of food they collected each day depended on what announcements were made and what alert level the city was in.
"The demand is always there ... it's always growing, and I think it's a sign of the times since the last lockdown with regards to rising rents, household income and job security."
She said the need was almost immediate and suspected families were left "scrambling" with the sudden stop to breakfasts and lunches in schools.
"Lunches in schools is an amazing programme, but I think the question needs to be asked of what do we do when we go into lockdown. How do we support those families relying on those meals."
She said some recipient charities were now making family care packs as opposed to community meals which needed more food.
Gibson said the New Zealand Food Network had provided "generous" support through providing bulk food.
Requests for help were for the basics like produce, cereal and milk.
"People aren't asking for the luxuries, they're asking for the necessities."
Gibson said many restaurants made "amazing" donations early in the lockdown and the "super supportive" community in terms of goods like citrus and avocados.
A Rotorua single mother of two, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said her weekly supermarket shop went from usually $80 to $130 in the first week of lockdown.
She only worked part-time and earned $450 a week to spend on everything.
She said having the children at home, who would usually get the free lunches at school, added to the bill on the already expensive cost of living.
The woman is a permanent resident and has lived in New Zealand for eight years.
"How am I going to give a good life to my young kids," she said.
Tauranga Budget Advisory Service manager Shirley McCombe said many people pay for rent, power and petrol to get to work, but have nothing left for food.
Food insecurity was an issue for a "huge" number of clients and is often what brought people to the service, she said, and even those with money in their budget didn't have much.
The lockdown had worsened this for families, with children now at home not having the meals they got at school.
She said they tried to allocate $80 a week for food which was doable albeit not a lot, and many didn't have enough money to stock up their cupboards.
McCombe said they could help with issues around benefits, advocacy with creditors, debt reduction and support which can reduce pressure on finances.
"Sadly, for others, they still struggle and this has been made more difficult over the past couple of years with soaring rent and food costs."
Rotorua Budget Advisory Services manager Pakanui Tuhura said some people live day-to-day in terms of providing food for themselves and families to stay healthy.
He said cutting back food bills was usually where people turn when trying to manage budgets, and many clients were used to making do with whatever they have.
Sometimes it was valid, like cutting expensive takeaways or ingredients, he said, but sometimes it was because other costs and debts were prioritised over food.
When this happens, Tuhura said the team advise on the importance of food expenses and nutrition, and suggest other ways to get food, like food banks, neighbourhood gathering, and family and friends support.
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