Food demand is growing with more providers opening across Lincolnshire and Newark

It comes as Fareshare Midlands are seeing a dip in the amount of excess produce they have from retailers

Author: Charlotte LinnecarPublished 25th Mar 2024

An increase in demand for food is driving more foodbanks and support services to pop up across Lincolnshire and Newark,

90% of groups supplied by Fareshare Midlands say they've seen an increase in the number of people coming to them in the last few years

Laura Spencer is the Head of Development at the charity - they redistribute surplus food from retailers to services supporting communities across Lincolnshire and Newark

She tells us how things are changing:

"There are organisation out there that perhaps weren't offering food and they've recognised that actually the people that they're reaching or working alongside are also struggling for food. So, we've seen new organisations coming in to us and new projects setting up.

We've seen a constant climb in demand for food

"For us right now we're in a bit of a dip, supplies are quite low, and that can be a bit of a stretch and a challenge to meet the needs of our members who are all still looking to support people out in their communities. But we're hopeful that that'll take a positive turn come the spring."

She also added that there's more demand:

"We see a continuous need for food, so I guess because we went form the pandemic straight into really what was the cost of living crisis... and so we've seen a constant climb in demand for that food.

"Lots of our members tell us that they're seeing more people through the doors, and they're seeing new people through the doors that perhaps have ever had to ask for help before and are now needing to reach out to their local organisations."

To find out more about what FareShare Midlands do, you can go to their website faresharemidlands.org.uk

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