Social affairs - Tense situation for food banks in Lower Saxony and Bremen
The situation at the food banks in Lower Saxony and Bremen remains tense. "Everyone is under considerable pressure," said Uwe Lampe, Chairman of the regional food bank association. At some of the 100 or so locations, there are still admission stops.
Since the beginning of the Russian war against Ukraine, there have been 30 to 50 percent more customers at the food banks. "Demand is increasing at the same rate as refugees are coming to Germany." The supply situation varies from municipality to municipality. In cities with a population of 100,000 or more or central cities in sparsely populated areas, there is proportionally more food available than in rural areas.
The food banks are also concerned that more supermarkets are selling their expiring food with large discount campaigns. "We then don't have this food for those in need," said Lampe. In order to somewhat offset this development, two distribution centers are to be set up in Lower Saxony by the first quarter of 2024 at the latest - one in Emsland and one in the Hanover area. There are already such centers in Bremen and all other federal states.
The halls will be used to collect goods from food manufacturers that were not sold due to incorrect labels, for example. The distribution centers, which are also supported by the state government of Lower Saxony, will have space for 100 to 150 pallets of food. The goods will then be transported to the food banks in three vans each.
The pressure on food banks throughout Germany remains high. "Our food banks are in permanent crisis mode," said Andreas Steppuhn, Chairman of the umbrella organization Tafel Deutschland. In addition to the war in Ukraine, the reasons for this include higher inflation and increasing poverty in Germany.
Tafel Lower Saxony/Bremen
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- Despite being located in different regions, both food banks in Lower Saxony and the one in Bremen, the latter being a commune in Germany, are experiencing pressure due to the increase in demand caused by the Russian war against Ukraine.
- The halls for the new distribution centers in Lower Saxony, one in Emsland and another in the Hanover area, will primarily collect unsold food from manufacturers due to incorrect labels, which are often sold at discounted prices in supermarkets, reducing the availability for food banks.
- The food banks in Hanover, being part of Lower Saxony, are also experiencing increased demand, similar to that in other communes in Germany, as highlighted by Andreas Steppuhn, Chairman of Tafel Deutschland.
- Ukraine, stricken by the ongoing war, has resulted in a surge of food bank customers arriving in Germany, causing a significant shift in demographics and resource allocation for food banks across the country, including in lower population areas and urban communes like Hanover and Bremen.
Source: www.stern.de
