Christmas Appeal: Tauranga foodbank reports ‘record demand’ as cost of living rises

Tauranga Community Foodbank is seeing “record demand”, with homeowners, people working fulltime and double-income households among those crying out for food support.

Based on the organisation’s statistics, manager Nicki Goodwin says the hardship now is “much bigger” than during Covid.

This year, the foodbank has helped 22,298 people from 8213 households, which included 11,797 children.

It was “record demand”, with 28 per cent more people than last year, and nearly 50 per cent more than in 2021.

The foodbank was also spending an average of just over $20,000 per month on staple foods compared to about $14,800 the year before.

It comes as the Bay of Plenty Times launches its six-week annual Christmas Appeal for the Foodbank today.

Last year’s appeal resulted in $256,471 being donated - $167,758.84 in cash and $88,712 in food donations, with each item valued at $2.50. It was the highest total raised in the appeal’s history. The second highest was $254,416 donated in 2020.

The appeal is kicking off as the average household experiences a 7.4 per cent rise in living costs in the year to September, according to Statistics New Zealand.

An increase in interest payments of 27.3 per cent was the biggest contributor, followed by rises in the cost of grocery food (11 per cent), rent (5 per cent), insurance (12.9 per cent) and property rates or related services (9.6 per cent).

According to Stats NZ’s most up-to-date Consumers Price Index, the prices of meat, fish and poultry increased 8 per cent on the previous year.

The index also recorded a 4.6 per cent hike in transport costs and a 5.3 per cent rise in the cost of housing and housing utilities, including energy.

Trade Me rental figures show the median rent in Tauranga was $680 in August, with prices said to be likely to keep rising over the next year as supply dropped.

Goodwin said there had been a steady increase in clients since August last year.

More people needed support, and there were more new faces, including many who worked fulltime, families on two incomes, and homeowners with mortgages.

There had also been more people aged 65 years and older needing support, which was being addressed in a new collaborative programme called Super Support.

People were also seeking longer-term support, rather than a parcel to help get them through a tough couple of weeks, and the Foodbank’s store, open about a year, had helped meet that need.

Goodwin said housing costs had been the biggest driver of demand increases over the past five years, now it was the rising cost of living behind the spike.

Previously, many accessed the foodbank after a crisis happened, but that had changed.

“It’s just costs have crept up day-to-day and they’re not able to meet those costs.”

Tauranga Community Foodbank manager Nicki Goodwin says the rainy day they prepare for is here. Photo / Alex Cairns

The foodbank had always covered the area from Pahoia to Pāpāmoa East, but rising demand had led to more deliveries.

This year it started running two delivery vans on two days a week, but from October it had run two vans daily.

Volunteer numbers and staff hours also had to rise to keep up.

The foodbank’s 12-month food budget was spent in five months, but Goodwin said there were no close calls in terms of running out of food.

“We’ve always prepared for a rainy day, and I think the rainy day is here right now.”

There had, however, been changes to the types of food they purchased - for example increasing their budget and getting a better fresh produce price as the cost of canned fruit increased.

Snack foods such as two-minute noodles, muesli bars, chips or crackers had not been included in the, on average, 33 parcels sent out each day.

Goodwin said Christmas was a time when everyone started thinking of others and how they could help.

“Some of us are really lucky and aren’t concerned what this time of year might mean, whereas for others it can be very stressful.”

She said they had “no idea” what demand this Christmas would bring, which was “scary” as they were already operating at festive levels.

Usually, there was about a 40 per cent increase in the few weeks before Christmas, linked to school holidays, meaning children were not being fed at school.

She said during Covid, they could hold on to the knowledge the high demand would be temporary.

“Covid was just a little thing; what we’re facing now seems much, much bigger,” she said, based on its data for the past four years.

Goodwin said the community support was “vital”. Cash donations allowed them to buy bulk food including meat, eggs, and other staples, and food donations were often things the foodbank couldn’t buy.

Goodwin said this year’s appeal was about partnership and collaboration.

“The community can be part of that collaboration, by donating goods, their time or funds. It’s really forming this whole community partnership to make our community as food-secure and sustainable as possible.”

Looking to next year, Goodwin said the team hoped to increase the number of people who could access the store, look at the wider community needs, grow the Super Support, and be prepared to pivot to address the need.

Bay of Plenty Times editor Scott Inglis said he and his staff were proud to do their part in support of the Tauranga Community Foodbank again this year.

“The support from the Tauranga community has always been incredible, with people going above and beyond for others.”

He said this year had been extremely difficult for everyone, and every bit of support made a difference.

Cira Olivier is a social issues and breaking news reporter for NZME Bay of Plenty. She has been a journalist since 2019.