Simon Coveney, Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, visited Feed Cork today to pay tribute to the hard work and dedication of their team of volunteers.
He was welcomed to their food hall and cafes, and encouraged the staff as they continue to tackle the growing numbers accessing their services.
Minister Coveney assured the team that he would be supporting their efforts in the future to access much needed funding during the current cost of living crisis, to ensure they will continue to meet the growing needs.
Feed Cork has seen an 83% increase of people accessing their service over the past year.
Every week they distribute over 7 tonnes of food to over 600 people in Cork City from their Cork City base at Cork Church, Lower Oliver Plunkett Street.
Over 40 volunteers spend 450 volunteer hours a week to service their clients on their two days of operation, Wednesday and Thursday.
Each family receives a 4-5 day supply of food, and enjoy access to the complimentary café.
On Fridays, Feed Cork run their After School Fuel Programme, which delivers 7 meals to school children that need extra support on the weekends.
Partnering with Brook Foods and local DEIS schools, After School Fuel is now operating in 5 schools and supporting 50 school children.
Part of Minister Coveney’s visit centred around gaining greater access to funding to expand this vital programme that runs 52 weeks of the year.
The demand for this programme is growing and has the potential to be in every DEIS school and support over 800 local children.
Minister Coveney assured the team that he would assist them as they seek to secure funding.
He rounded out his visit at Feed Cork with a meet and greet with the volunteers, where he thanked them and praised their efforts.
He reassured them of his support while he also spoke of the importance of giving back to their community, and its value in society.
