Pandemic leads to more families seeking help from local food charity

(Above) Food poverty activist Ken Smollen.

A local food poverty activist whose charity helps nearly 900 families across the midlands is expecting a huge increase in the number of people seeking help as the economic fallout from the Covid-19 pandemic becomes more apparent.

The Ken Smollen Food Appeal is currently providing regular food packages to some 860 families across the region. Since Level 5 restrictions were introduced last month, there has been a significant upsurge in the number of people looking for help, founder Ken Smollen told the Westmeath Examiner.

“Over the last few weeks roughly 20 new families [a week] have called. They are all working families who are now getting the Pandemic Unemployment Payment and are not getting enough to survive, to pay ordinary bills along with basic necessities, including food.”

In the last two years the number of local families seeking help from the charity has more than doubled. Mr Smollen expects to see a major increase in demand for help in the new year.

“I do expect that in January or February that the number will pass the thousand-family mark. Going by Focus Ireland’s figure of four people per household, if that happens you are talking about 4,000 people, half of whom are children.

“No matter what people say, children are innocent and can’t be blamed for the situation they find themselves in. Huge numbers of children are going to school without enough food. Many are very good at not letting on that they had no breakfast. Mam and Dad are too embarrassed to let anyone know and their children get the message. I know of some families who are keeping their children from school because they can’t feed them.

“It’s a dire situation and I am very concerned that we are going to have more and more families coming forward. I am actually glad when people do come forward because at least we are getting to them.”

Mr Smollen says that during the Covid-19 pandemic, there has also been a major increase in the number of local people getting loans from unregulated money lenders. He expects the problem to get worse in the run-up to Christmas.

“They are resorting to unregulated lenders who charge huge interest rates because they don’t qualify for even small loans from credit unions. They see no other choice but to go to unregulated money lenders,” he said.

The Ken Smollen Food Appeal, which was recently awarded charitable status, has groups of volunteers, called Family Rescue Teams, that collect food donations from their communities. Prior to the pandemic there were around 30 Rescue Teams around the midlands, but the number has reduced significantly during the pandemic.

Gearing up for the busiest Christmas since he founded the organisation in 2016, Mr Smollen says that while the number of Rescue Teams has fallen, there has been a big increase in the number of donations from businesses and organisations.

Now that it is a registered charity, the food appeal can now also accept donations and hold fundraisers. Mr Smollen, who since the start of the pandemic packs and delivers all of the food boxes himself, says he is also frequently bowled over by the generosity of people.

“There is a group of people in Australia organising a collection, while I recently received a substantial donation from a lady in Kerry. It is all about creating public awareness about food poverty. Many people are not aware that it exists,” he says.