Food poverty had been a problem in West Lothian long before the Coronavirus outbreak and lockdown crisis.
Thousands of people were already having to rely on emergency food provision, such as food banks, to ensure they could put food on the table.
Between April 2018 and March 2019, almost 3000 West Lothian Food Bank vouchers were issued to individuals and families to keep them from going hungry.
West Lothian Council led the way in Scotland of the breakfast clubs for vulnerable children at schools.
The council has also developed summer lunch clubs working with community projects. That network has become even more important following the lockdown.
The council held its first ever food summit in early March where local organisations including the NHS, Third Sector and churches joined to discuss proposals for delivering Food with Dignity.
Depute leader of the council Councillor Kirsteen Sullivan said: “Little did we know that it would be so timely. The establishment of a food network is just one part of a wider plan to tackle hunger in our communities.”
The council recently announced funding for existing food provider projects.
Nine local programmes will see funding being provided to community food providers to ensure they can continue to deliver food to those who are in need.
A West Lothian Council spokesperson said: “The council and community food partners are working together to support those facing food insecurity during the Covid-19 outbreak.
“We are ensuring that there is a Food with Dignity approach taken and the council is prioritising key groups who may be facing particular barriers to accessing food.
“We are working with our community food partners to put people in touch with those that can help and you can find this on the ‘Access to Food’ section on the West Lothian Council website (https://www.westlothian.gov.uk/article/48304/Access-to-Food).”
