An important contribution to poverty alleviation and more climate protection in Austria
Annual balance of Die Tafeln & SOMA Austria shows the importance of fighting poverty and food waste
In 2021, the members of the Association of Austrian Food Banks with more than 100 distribution points and more than 100 social and service facilities SOMA Austria with more than 40 social markets saved more than 15 million kilograms of food from being destroyed and thus saved the lives of more than 160,000 people at risk of poverty to enhance. That means more than 30 million meals. This result was made possible by the commitment of more than 5,000 full-time and voluntary helpers who work every day throughout Austria.
Subtitle: Austria: Food price increases hit the poorest sections of the population the hardest
1,000,000 tons of edible food from private households, gastronomy, trade, production and agriculture are still quickly destroyed every year. At the same time, 1.5 million people in Austria are at risk of poverty or affected by manifest poverty. The current situation is exacerbated by the massive increase in the cost of living, above all the rise in food prices, which is making itself felt in the wallets of everyone in Austria, but which affects no group as much as those people who are already at or below the poverty line Life. For more and more people, the monthly income is no longer sufficient, and this inevitably leads to savings in the quality and quantity of food. This means that more and more people in Austria are affected by food insecurity. Even before Corona, that was quickly 500,000 people.
The coming time will be even more difficult for many people than it already is, the number of people at risk of poverty will continue to rise, because the measures that have now been decided and those that have not been decided will not help people in the poverty trap significantly and it In addition to the approximately 1,500,000 people dying in Austria, there will be more at risk of poverty. That is why organizations such as Soma Austria & Partner, the Association of Austrian Food Banks and others are needed to currently help people at risk of poverty. In addition, every kilogram of food that is saved makes a significant contribution to a positive CO2 balance and thus also helps to improve the environment.
SOMA Austria & Die Tafeln: Working against poverty, hunger and food waste since 1999
Soma was founded on September 9th, 1999 in Linz. Since then, Soma has worked alongside trade and industry to give food a second chance and bring it to the people who need it. The symbolic prize is of outstanding importance for the psychological well-being of these people. Mag. Gerhard Steiner, SOMA Austria on the mission of the social markets: “It is important to us that you experience yourself as a customer at Soma, like in a regular grocery store, only with the difference that you can afford the products here people are able to put food on the table for themselves and their families by the end of the month. In addition to the atmosphere of a food market with all its hygienic requirements, it is also important to us that people can exchange ideas, share joy and worries.
The Association of Austrian Food Banks and its nine member organizations with over 100 distribution points and more than 100 supplied social institutions have built up specialized expertise and broad know-how in saving food from destruction over the past 23 years. Austria’s oldest food bank, the Wiener Tafel, has also been active in the association since September 9th, 1999. The members of the association give the saved food either directly to people affected by poverty after a previous needs assessment or indirectly via professionally working, recognized social organizations free of charge or for a symbolic contribution to costs.
Due to the current inflation, the Ukraine crisis and the effects of Covid-19, more and more people are looking for help from food banks and social markets. At the same time, spending on goods is falling dramatically. dr Alexandra Gruber, Chairwoman of the Association of Austrian Food Banks and Managing Director of Wiener Tafel, raises the alarm: “In the first few months of this year, the need for food has already increased by more than 30%”. At the same time, food spending is decreasing, especially from trade, wholesale and production, because more and more commercial initiatives want to turn these food surpluses into money. However, this is then missing from the food banks and thus from those people who are urgently dependent on food aid. Alexandra Gruber continues: “In principle, any measure to raise awareness against food waste in the general population is to be welcomed, but I doubt whether this has to be exactly the food that was previously saved from the food banks and thus for people affected by poverty.”
For the first time in 2021, the Tafeln received major funding from the Federal Ministry for Social Affairs, Health, Care and Consumer Protection to build up key staff and to expand the infrastructure with refrigerated vehicles, forklifts, (deep) refrigerators, etc. in Austria. As part of this funding, the association formed a consortium with other food bank organizations for the first time. dr Alexandra Gruber appeals to the federal, state and local governments to further expand this support for the food banks throughout Austria, because: “As food banks and social markets, we in Austria play an important role in the fight against poverty, hunger and food waste and thus – especially in challenging times like these – make a decisive contribution to poverty alleviation, reducing the carbon footprint and raising awareness in civil society against food waste.”
About the Association of Austrian Food Banks
The Association of Austrian Food Banks represents sustainable ecological and social positions in politics, business and society at national and international level. It stands for social transfer from the affluent to the needy society. In cooperation with industry, trade and agriculture, the Austrian food banks save edible food and finance people affected by poverty directly and in cooperation with other non-profit organizations. Members of the Association of Austrian Food Banks are: Braunauer Tafel | The Upper Austrian Table | Flachgau Table | Le+O of Caritas Austria | Pannonian Table | Red Cross Lower Austria | Red Cross Tyrol | Team Austria Tafel, Red Cross | Viennese table.
About SOMA Austria & Partners
With more than 40 Soma across Austria, and more than 1,000 employees and volunteers, Soma & Austria and Partners creates a shopping experience for more than 100,000 customers, like in a supermarket. People can shop there for a symbolic price and use the money they save to buy products in grocery stores that are not available from Soma.
Source: Association of Austrian Food Banks & SOMA Austria & Partners
Article put online by: / Doris Holler /