Hong Kong food banks face supply chain disruption, and drop in volunteers and money coming in

Food Angel, which used to turn unwanted food into hot meals, is using its cash reserves to buy supplies to make cook-chill meals for low-income families instead

Food bank Feeding Hong Kong’s regular suppliers, such as airlines, are giving less food, even as it provides survival packs to the growing ranks of needy

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Charities and food banks in Hong Kong have issued a cry for help as they face a drop in donations and volunteers, as demand for their services rise during the coronavirus pandemic. Photo: Food Angel

Published: 7:15am, 22 May 2020Updated: 1:32pm, 22 May 2020

At a warehouse in the industrial district of Yau Tong in Kowloon, a production line of volunteers pack boxes with bags of rice, cans of fish, bottles of cooking oil and other food items. They’re destined for Hong Kong’s needy.

This is the headquarters of Feeding Hong Kong, a charity that collects surplus stock from food companies, sorts and stores it, then distributes it to a network of more than 100 partner charities.

“These boxes you see being packed now are emergency food parcels that have been organised as a direct response to Covid-19,” says the food bank’s chief executive, Gabrielle Kirstein, who founded Feeding Hong Kong a decade ago.

In the past three months, the charity has seen changes to its food rescue operations as demand for key staples and hygiene products surges, all while juggling disruptions to supply chains, logistics and funding.

Gabrielle Kirstein founded Feeding Hong Kong a decade ago. Photo: Kylie Knott

“Our donation programmes have been impacted by the pandemic, which means we’ve had to pivot our operations,” says Kirstein. “Take, for example, the programme we have with the airport where we collect surplus food from inbound flights to Hong Kong,” she says, referring to non-perishable items such as packets of peanuts, biscuits, cereal, condiments and baby food, as well boxed teas, juices and bottled water.