Christmas Appeal: Donations for Tauranga Community Foodbank crack $100,000; demand up 34 per cent since 2021

At the same time last year, the total was $119,963, with$100,221 from cash donations and 7897 food items valued at the same price.

Foodbank manager Nicki Goodwin said many businesses and people were getting in touch to find out how to donate and which items were needed.

She said “lots” of Christmas goodies had come through the door, which would be “super exciting” to hand out in the next few weeks.

“Our volunteers get a real buzz out of adding in treats,” she said.

Large donations this week came from Tauranga-Te Papa Rotary, Tauranga Lyceum Club, ANZ Business Centre, Pacific Lakes Village, Plunket and The Hits Christmas Movie in the Park.

Goodwin said cash donations were “significantly” lower compared to this time last year, but what mattered most was that people were giving what they could.

She added that the demand for food support in the last four weeks had been more than last year, and 34 per cent higher than this time in 2021.

She said the next two weeks would be “hectic”.

There was a sense of people feeling overwhelmed with stress and anxiety, and the foodbank was meeting many people who had never before needed to ask for help. Goodwin said they understood how daunting this could be.

This year has seen “record demand”, with the organisation spending an average of $20,012 each month on staple foods, compared to $14,758 a month the year before.

Goodwin thanked the community for the support.

“You are truly making a difference to the lives of others.”

“If you haven’t had a chance to donate, don’t worry - there is still another two weeks.”

Last year’s six-week appeal saw $256,471 donated - $167,758.84 in cash and $88,712 in food donations, with each item valued at $2.50. It was the highest amount raised in the appeal’s history. The second-highest was a total of $254,416, donated in 2020.

Any items are welcome, even if they’re not on the list. Cash donations are also welcome.

Cira Olivier is a social issues and breaking news reporter for NZME Bay of Plenty. She has been a journalist since 2019.