Lancaster District has an excellent network of food clubs that offer food support across the area. In fact, 12 food clubs provide over 1000 households with food each week, and their members often remark on how going to their food club acted as a “lifeline” and that “without this place, we wouldn’t manage”. Despite them offering vital community services, they are in trouble…
For those that have never heard of a food club before, they offer a membership-based service that provides food at a reduced cost to people in need. Individuals or families can pay a membership fee each week (usually between £4-£7) in exchange for about £25-£30 worth of food.
Food clubs often act as a step-up from needing a food bank: providing people who might be struggling financially with healthy, nutritious and accessible food. Many food clubs are run or assisted by volunteers and are a huge asset to our communities. Staff and volunteers work tirelessly to procure, organise and distribute food to ensure that our communities are welcomed and supported at each food club.
However, our region’s food clubs are currently facing many challenges and are in need of wider support.
They primarily rely on surplus food (food that might be expiring soon, often donated by supermarkets) and food donations. More recently, due to reductions in surplus food and donations, they are receiving less food whilst having to feed more people. As a result, food clubs are having to search for funding to purchase additional food to provide for all their members. This is simply not sustainable.
You may have read the recent news that food banks within the Lancaster district are experiencing a drastic drop in food donations, and this is the same for our region’s food clubs.
The Lancaster District Food Justice Partnership and the wider FoodFutures partnership is currently thinking through longer term solutions to make sure that our communities can continue to be supported and well fed through tricky life moments by our region’s wonderful food clubs.
To help, please support your local food clubs by remaining loyal to them if you are a member and by making donations if you can.
You can also follow FoodFutures’ Gold Campaign to keep up to date on how else you can support as they seek to strengthen our region’s food networks.
