Pupils get taste of the tough life

Four teenagers who took on a challenge to raise awareness of their local foodbank described it as a “real eye-opener”.

The Peterhead Academy pupils decided to only eat kettle-cooked food for a week as part of their Youth and Philanthropy Initiative (YPI) Scotland project.

They hope the challenge, which was designed not only to raise awareness of Peterhead’s foodbank but also vital funds, will help them win the charity a prize of £3,000.

Chelsea SutherlandThom, Zoe McKessick, Anna McAuslan, all 16, and Sanija Gorodko, 15, ate only items usually given out in emergency food parcels.

But the girls found limiting themselves to

“Some people survive eating like this after getting help”

meals of porridge, instant noodles and “slightly crunchy” instant pasta to be a steep learning curve.

Chelsea added: “Some people survive eating like this after getting help from the foodbanks.

“If I was in that position there would also be a lot of mental and financial factors so it would be hard, but having food of some sort would be good.”

As part of the project, the team established food collection points at the school, in Dales Park and at Hughes, MacDonald and Davidson opticians.

The girls also plan to raise funds by helping out at the Methodist Church buttery morning on November 17 and at the Dales Park Christmas fair on November 24.

Donations can be made at the foodbank which is open on Mondays, Thursdays and Fridays between 11am and 1pm or by contacting the YPI Peterhead Foodbank fundraising page on Facebook.