Charity chief warns of heartbreaking hardship

NEARLY 130,000 emergency food parcels were provided to families in the North East in the last year, new figures show.

- GRAEME WHITFIELD Journal editor [e-mail]

The figures from Trussell, the UK's largest operator of food banks, showed that 129,011 emergency parcels were distributed in the region between April 2024 and March 2025.

This is a 31% increase compared to the same period five years ago, though a drop from the 150,000 figure reported last year.

Trussell says it is seeing 'heartbreaking' levels of hardship, with some parents forced to ration their own food to ensure they can feed their children, while others are so desperate that they open food parcels and eat before leaving the food bank.