The Rotorua Salvation Army has not been as busy as they expected so far this year, despite the recent St John's Church fire and the start of the year being traditionally a financially stressful time.
Rotorua Salvation Army corps officer Ralph Overbye said the food bank was assessed throughout the year and their busiest times were usually in the lead-up to Christmas and school holidays.
"We haven't been as busy as expected, but sometimes families can be in denial early in the year after needing to spend more than they can afford over Christmas and getting the kids back to school.
"We encourage people to come to seek support before their debt gets overwhelming - that way we can provide budgeting advice and other help.
"We want to give people hope that there is a way to get things back under control."
He said they had not seen a marked increase in people needing assistance since the St John's fire but had made the offer to help.
Their food bank is well stocked at the moment due to the "fantastic" response during the annual Christmas appeal, he said.
"We also continue to receive donations and so we are looking healthy but it is too early to say how long the current stock will last.
"We continue to be really grateful for the generosity of the Rotorua community."
Mr Overbye said they would ask people some of the tough questions and challenge them where necessary, to examine where their money was going and to look at how they could cut costs.
"We would like to think that our message of hope is making a difference."