In Portugal, more and more people rely on food banks

Until last year, Carla Lacerda made a decent living in a duty-free shop at the airport in a holiday resort in the Algarve, in the south of Portugal. Last August, however, she finally lost her job as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. She ran out of money quickly and needs to feed her two children. She had no choice but to join the growing crowd of people who are dependent on help from the so-called food banks. A 40-year-old woman now receives unemployment benefits of around € 500 a month, leaving her with no choice but to line up for donated food. "I never thought I would be in this situation," Lacerda said as she waited for milk, vegetables and other basic goods at Refood Charity in Faro, the capital of the Algarve. "It's sad that I got into this situation, but I'm not ashamed." Lacerda is one of thousands of people whose lives have been turned upside down by the pandemic. Blockades and travel restrictions have destroyed tourism in the sunny Algarve. The local beaches as well as golf resorts are largely deserted. The Algarve Food Bank, which has two warehouses in the region, now helps 29,000 people, almost double the pre-pandemic. "For the first time since the opening of the food bank in the Algarve, the numbers have reached this level, "said its president Nuno Alves, when volunteers distributed food to cars of various charities. Poverty is also spreading among the middle class, Alves said, with people from the key tourism industry being the most affected. Many businesses in this sector have had to close and some may never open again. In February, the number of registered unemployed in the Algarve jumped by as much as 74% year on year, more than in any other Portuguese region. At Refood's Faro branch, which collects uneaten food from restaurants and supermarkets and distributes it to people in need, 172 families are waiting for supplies every week. This represents an increase of about 160% since the beginning of the pandemic.