The Press and Journal (Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire)
Provost gets taste of poverty
Campaign: Adam tries to feed himself on £2 a day to highlight struggle
Aberdeen’s Lord Provost has suggested that money wasted by shoppers buying excess food could be diverted to help struggling families.
George Adam encouraged residents to think about contributing to foodbanks after spending a week trying to feed himself on £2 per day.
He was one of many people taking part in an awareness-raising initiative organised by Community Food Initiatives North East (CFINE).
Participants were allowed to spend just £10 on five days’ food to highlight a “staggering” rise in numbers going hungry in the north-east.
He said that while it proved “quite tough”, it opened his eyes to how hard it is to survive five weeks, five months or longer on a tight budget.
Porridge, homemade soup, fruit and pasta featured heavily in a carefullyplanned menu of budget meals.
And Mr Adam said that if people were more careful about what they bought, they could reduce waste and save money.
“There are a lot of lessons we can learn,” he said about the challenge – which his office staff joined him in tackling.
“One is about learning to prepare and be more efficient about what we spend – making sure we only buy what we need.
“The money that we save, the money we do not throw away when the food goes off: how about giving it to people who really need it?
“All sorts of people find themselves in difficult positions and need support. This is about highlighting the work CFINE does.”
The charity and social enterprise recently revealed public donations to north-east food banks had plummeted by 75%. In June, it moved from a weekly to a fortnightly distribution after stocks of staples such as tinned meals ran low.
The Appetite for Change scheme has seen volunteers get sponsored to squeeze their food spend to help raise funds.
Chief executive Dave Simmers said there had been a “fantastic response” with nearly 50 people taking part. And the group is confident of raising well over the £5,000 target.
Mr Simmers added: “This campaign has undoubtedly impacted on awareness of the challenges of living on benefits or low wages.”
Mr Adam faced more temptations than most – he had to turn down tasty offerings while doing his ceremonial duties.
“All sorts of people find themselves in difficult positions”