Food Emergency in Edinburgh

People in deprived parts of Edinburgh are facing the threat of food shortages as supplies at food banks across the city run “critically low”, the Edinburgh Food Project, a charity which operates seven food bank centres across the capital,has warned.

The charity, part of the Trussell Trust Food Bank network, said it only had enough food for this week, and may not be be able to supply people with complete food parcels beyond that point.

Operations manager Bethany Biggar told The Independent donations of food were not sufficient to meet rising demand.

She said: “Until we have a benefits systems that’s caring, compassionate and supportive, a minimum wage covering the essentials, and a workforce that is reliable and secure, we will continue to support those who need us. We will not allow people in Edinburgh to starve.” She added the charity had no choice but to depend on the “generous support of the public” and without this, it “simply would not be able to help people living in poverty”. Ms Biggar said if the charity does not succeed in increasing stock levels now, its food parcels will be unable to meet that standard, which is why it is running an urgent appeal for public donations.

The charity had so far helped 11,402 people over the last 12 months, a 19 per cent rise on the year before. It had also been 4,530 food parcel requests between January and April this year – 47 per cent up on the same period last year.  Food parcels are made up of three daily meals and cover three days of supplies. Recipients of food parcels are entitled to collect food from the charity up to three times in six months.

The charity had received £4,800 in grant funding from the Scottish government to purchase fresh food, which was “just enough” to cover two of its food banks in Pilton and Craigmillar.

25 per cent of people (3237) helped by the charity experienced changes to benefits and delays to benefit payments, and this was one of the most common reasons for their dependence on food banks. But at almost 53 per cent (6002 people), low income was the most common reason, while others included homelessness, debt, sickness and domestic violence.