In Foodbank’s Week of Care, running from 16-23 July, the food and grocery relief organisation has revealed 40 per cent of people accessing services have requested more household cleaning products, followed closely by personal care items. The packaged goods sector plays a big role in meeting this need.
Foodbank provides food and grocery relief to more than one million Australians every month. In the past nine months, it has seen an average increase of 21 per cent in people seeking food relief, correlating with the cash rate rises each month. Non-food items in demand include basic, but necessary, products such as nappies, shampoo and conditioner, washing detergent, oral care, period care items and many more – simple items that fall off the family budget when times are tough.
With Week of Care now in its third year, Foodbank Australia CEO Brianna Casey hopes it will shine a spotlight on what these non-food products mean, and just how vital they are to the many vulnerable households around the country.
Foodbank says this is an important week for the organisation to highlight its valuable non-food donors, and the essential products donated. Donors include Beiersdorf, Haleon, Henkel, Kenvue Kimberly-Clark, L’Oreal, P&G, PZ Cussons, Reckitt, Unilever, and Sorbent.
“To the many people we provide relief to, these non-food items are more than just a product on a shelf. Shampoo represents clean, fresh hair so they can be presentable at work, or school. Washing detergent equals clean clothes, period items make it easier to go to school or simply just leave the house, all this helps maintain a sense of dignity when life becomes really tough.
“If we were not able to rely on the generosity of our non-food donors and provide the toothbrushes, nappies, soap and detergent, many of these items would be out of reach for the thousands of Aussies doing it tough every day,” said Casey.
Foodbank has seen an increase in the demand for food and grocery relief due to the cost-of-living crisis, changing the demographics of who the food relief organisation traditionally has helped.
“We are seeing people with not one, but two jobs, families with mortgages or rents, students, retirees, people from all different walks of life. We want to be able to essentially wrap our arms around these people and help them. We want to make the step of asking for help easy and accessible and we want to normalise that it’s okay to get help.”
Casey said Foodbank is grateful for the number of national donors who provide these personal care, household care and other non-food products which are in such high demand.
