Newspapers, TV, the airwaves and social media have been awash with complaints about the idiocy of the move.

Foodbank spokespeople rammed home multiple messages. That they supported the food production food chain by creating their meals from scratch. That the community supported them through food drives. How many of those receiving the food were battlers unable to put a hearty meal on the table. Yes, the homeless were in there, but more so ordinary, everyday Australians struggling to make ends meet. 

Bendigo Foodshare chair Cathie Steel had warned they would face issues sourcing essential products such as breakfast cereals, pasta, rice, canned fruit and vegetables with a funding cut. That threat was lifted with Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s change of heart. 

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But it should never have happened in the first place. Yes, fund more emergency food providers, but don’t do it at the expense of those already providing an over-subscribed service. In fact, pull the money from some other boondoggle and channel it into better food security for all.

It is appalling that in Australia, one of the wealthiest nations in the world, people struggle to feed themselves. This is a basic necessity. Not a luxury.

Farmers, shelling out hundreds of thousands of dollars in shipping in hay to keep their stock alive, are struggling to find enough money to put food on their own tables. 

Across the state requests for help with meals continue to grow. Those seeking the help could, increasingly, be your neighbours. At some point, it could be you. 

Now is the time to lobby for a better food deal for those on the breadline. Keep the pressure on those with their hands on the public purse strings to do better.

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