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'New poor' in Italy line up for free food
(Agencies)
Updated: 2008-10-24 13:56 MILAN -- An empty plastic bag in hand, Italian shop assistant Stefano G. stands in line with hundreds of others waiting to collect handouts of basic foods he says he can no longer afford.
For the last seven months, the 43-year-old, who supports his pensioner parents and declined to give his full name because he did not want to be recognised, has been coming to the Pane Quotidiano (Daily Bread) charity in Milan to take home free bread, milk, fruit and vegetables and other produce. Charities in Italy, where according to the World Bank Gross National Income was $33,540 per head in 2007, say a rising number of people of working or pensionable age are seeking their help. Known as "the new poor" to some, the first-timers line up to collect food or eat at soup kitchens, where charities say they still represent a minority compared with immigrants. Italy was already on the brink of recession before double-digit price rises for staple foods and the latest spasms of the financial crisis. Stefano said he earns "a few hundred euros" a month. "Things are getting worse and worse, it's a crisis. With prices rising, what can I do but this? I can't steal," he said. "Every little helps." Exactly how many people are joining the food queues is hard to say, but humanitarian groups say the trend is spreading as a slowdown and high prices push many on low incomes or without jobs into hardship. "This is something that cannot be ignored and will probably rise further," said Marina Nava, of Milan charitable centre Opera San Francesco, which offers free meals. "These are people who have a home and up until a little while ago lived above the poverty threshold. But with things changing (they) quickly fall below," said Nava. Officially 6.8 percent of Italians are unemployed: Roman Catholic charity Caritas says 13 percent of Italy's 58 million people are considered poor, living on less than 500-600 euros a month, or less than half the average salary. In a report, it also highlighted the "nearly poor", those just above the poverty threshold by a marginal 10-50 euros a month. Sudden Jump "Among first-timers, a third are Italians," said Mario Marazziti of Rome's San Egidio church soup kitchen. "Slowly, the percentage of Italians (at San Egidio) is increasing." The euro zone's third-largest economy has been one of its most sluggish performers for years, suffering more than most from high oil prices, a strong euro and the global slowdown. |
