The Food Bank run by The Salvation Army in Gainsborough gave out over £40,000 worth of food last year. Of the 200+ people a week needing a basic food parcel, 150 people were pensioners and low-paid employees.
Major Colin Bradshaw spends £2,500 per month on food; the rest is made up of food donations from churches, businesses, organisations and individuals. The reason for the increase in spending and the increase in people needing a food parcel is the impact of the cost-of-living crisis affecting what people can donate at food collection points in Lidl, Co-op, Tesco and Morrisons.
A basic food parcel costing £5.00 contains one each of: UHT milk, box of Weetabix, bag of tea, tin of soup, tin of beans, tin of chopped tomatoes or pasta sauce, bag of pasta or rice, tin of hotdogs, tin of tuna.
The Food Bank would love to put more food in its bags but does not have the resources.
Because the Food Bank is run by Gainsborough Salvation Army, there are no other costs. The church volunteers run the Food Bank and the church pays for light, heat, admin and storage. This means that every penny is spent on buying food to help people at their time of need.
Gainsborough Salvation Army is open every Monday and Friday, 9.00am to 1.00pm and Sunday, 9.30am to 12.30pm to receive donations of food or money. Monetary donations can be posted to: The Salvation Army, Beaumont Street, Gainsborough DN21 2ER.
For more information search Gainsborough Food Bank on Facebook.