The key function of the Food Bank is the redistribution of food to cover food needs, while at the same time limiting food waste, which is at high levels in Greece. Food that, while suitable for consumption, cannot be absorbed by the market, together with food purchased through specific-purpose donations, is offered free of charge to soup kitchens and institutions.
As part of our mission, for the last four years we have been recording the profile of the people who turn to soup kitchens, the characteristics of the needs of these people, but also of the soup kitchens themselves. The data are very useful for our daily operations. As there are few similar studies, these data can be a source of information for other stakeholders. Issues of previous surveys are available on the Foundation’s website.
In this issue, you will find the key highlights of the 2024 survey organized into three sections.
Eurostat figures show the official, macroscopic picture. They indicate the position of Greece compared to other countries in Europe, and the correlation of food insecurity with household composition and the poverty line.
The second section presents the demographic profile of the people who go to soup kitchens, based on the graduate thesis by Eva Stouraiti. Eva has been working at the Food Bank since 2022 and the thesis was prepared for the master’s programme “Analysis and Implementation of Social Policy” at Panteion University, in 2024. Of particular interest in the paper are the quantitative and qualitative data that emerged from interviews she conducted, talking directly to people in need at soup kitchens assisted by the Food Bank. The entire thesis is posted in the Panteion library.
Lastly, some selected data from the Food Bank’s survey of last summer are presented. In total, 66 fully answered questionnaires were collected from representatives of soup kitchens in regions outside Attica. As the responses presented a strong relation to the 2023 survey, we have chosen to present some key points in a more concise form. I must also thank Elefthera Dominiki who has been working at the Food Bank for the last year, and has played an important role in this project.
– Are there people asking for food? Do we still need soup kitchens to this day?
– Undoubtedly —and unfortunately— yes.
The average level of food insecurity in Greece converges with the European average at 10%. However, food insecurity among people below the poverty line shoots up to 38%, almost four times higher. By approaching these people, we can see the extent to which they are deprived of meals, the problems they face, the lack of support networks and their personal stories.
Following the example of other countries in Europe, on our initiative, food banks are operating in six other regions of Greece. These are different legal entities, which apply the same model in the region in which they are located, having a better knowledge of local needs and exploiting local production surpluses. The Food Banks form a network headed by the non-profit Food Bank- Institution to Fight Hunger, based in Attica, which is responsible for guiding, supporting and representing the network.
For example, in 2023 we managed to move 2,148 tonnes of products for more than 110,000 people across Greece, with the support of 149 companies and in cooperation with 333 soup kitchens and other charities. In relation to the problems, our capacity is limited, but the results of our efforts are – I think – significant.
Dimitris Nentas
General Manager
Testimony of a person at a facility in the center of Athens
“I usually don’t have enough money to buy food. When I pay less for electricity or water, I might have 10-20 euros left for the supermarket, but generally, I don’t go because I don’t have anything.”
Testimony of a person in a shelter in Patissia
“I eat whatever I can find. I have no preferences—I can’t afford to! If I find something to eat, I’m happy. If I don’t, I sleep hungry. I don’t often go without any food because I get it here.”
Testimony of a person at a facility in the center of Athens
“I prefer to be alone so I don’t burden other people. I don’t want to trouble them with my problems.
The woman who gives me food at the church sometimes invites me to dinner, but I don’t want to go
because I don’t want to talk to her about my problems.”
Testimony of a person at a facility in Nikaia
“It’s the child I’m worried about. Because of the child, I might not eat the food I prefer so the child isn’t deprived of anything. The baby needs special nutrition, and it’s not easy to provide that. Towards the end of the month, when the aid food runs out, I eat less.”
Testimony of a man in a shelter in Ag.Paraskevi
“Lately, with the help of the soup kitchen, there is variety. The help from the grocery store is specific, rice, pasta, you can’t live on that alone, and from the soup kitchen we get meat or minced meat or deli meats for the children’s toasted sandwich. Different foods, cereal bars, snacks, help us to provide variety. When they run out of food towards the end of the month, the children go through the drawers.”
They are 65 and 62 years old respectively. They reside with the family of their young son, their 2 grandchildren, and their grandmother who is 82 years old. Out of the whole family only the son works and they have the pension of the grandmother who has many health problems. The whole family is facing an intense livelihood problem.
Both parents work part-time and for very low wages. They live in their grandmother’s house as they cannot afford to rent. They mainly receive food aid, but they also need school supplies and clothes for the children.
He lives in a dwelling, in poor living conditions. He does not receive a pension and tries to live on a 200 euro allowance. She faces the usual health problems due to her age, and has no help from her children who live in distant areas. In the winter months it cannot meet the need for heating by any means. It is served daily by the soup kitchen, with food rations and long-life food from the soup kitchen.
Married couple living in a house with a loan. They are both low paid. They have four children, two of whom are doing their military service in the province. The two girls are students in Athens. Recently one of the children underwent surgery to repair a spinal problem. On a monthly basis they receive assistance with basic food items, and occasionally with clothing.