MORE than 32,000 emergency food supplies were distributed in Northern Ireland last year - of which 13,000 were for children.
Annual figures from the Trussell Trust charity show that record levels of three-day food packages were delivered to "people in crisis".
The charity revealed there was a 13 per cent increase in demand across the UK from the previous year and attributed the rise to people on benefits not able to afford essentials.
Emma Revie, chief executive of the Trussell Trust, said the rising numbers relying on food banks showed that "for too many people staying above water is a daily struggle".
SDLP health spokesperson Mark H Durkan said the figures were a "damning indictment" of the welfare system.
"The Trussell Trust report states that unless changes are made to our welfare system, the situation will get worse with the roll out of Universal Credit.
"...People in our communities who we are supposed to be lifting out of poverty, out of hardship, out of struggle are having to rely on charity to support them and their families."
Mr Durkan said the crisis highlighted the need for the restoration of power-sharing in the north and criticised Sinn Féin and the DUP for accepting the Universal Credit scheme.
But Sinn Féin's MLA Alex Maskey blamed foodbank dependency on Tory austerity measures.
"It is shameful that in this day and age so many people, including children, rely on foodbanks," he said.
"The rise of foodbank dependency is the direct result of the Tory government's attacks on the safety net of social security."
