LadBaby Christmas single Food Aid with Martin Lewis is released on December 16 for The Trussell Trust and Band Aid Trust
06:00, 16 December 2022
updated: 12:06, 16 December 2022
Food banks are currently handing out an emergency parcel every 13 seconds - says the charity hoping to benefit from this week's Christmas charity single release by LadBaby.
Social media stars Mark and Roxanne Hoyle, who found fame when millions resonated with their blogs about family life, have become the first ever act to be allowed to rework the iconic Band Aid song 'Do They Know it's Christmas'.
As big supporters of food bank charity The Trussell Trust it is hoped their version 'Food Aid' will raise hundreds of thousands of pounds for good causes from today.
The record, which also features consumer campaigner Martin Lewis, has been available to pre-order this week ahead of today's much-anticipated official release.
All profits from the song will be put towards fighting hunger and poverty, say the couple, with 50% set to be allocated to the Band Aid Trust, which gave their permission for their original track to be reworked, and the other half to The Trussell Trust which runs a network of food banks across the UK.
As the cost of living crisis continues to hit households hard, the need for emergency food is now outstripping donations that food banks are receiving - with at least one in five of those referred to food banks in working households.
More emergency food parcels were given out between April and September than ever before for that time of year while over the last six months more than 320,000 people have been forced to turn to food banks in the Trussell Trust network for the first time.
Emma Revie, CEO of the Trussell Trust explained: "Between April and September this year, food banks in the Trussell Trust network provided 1.3 million emergency food parcels to people facing hardship. Soaring food and fuel costs are affecting us all, but for families on the very lowest incomes this crisis means so much more and more people are likely to need a food bank’s help.
"Food bank teams are working tirelessly to ensure help continues to be available. But ultimately, no one in the UK should need a food bank – all of us should have enough money for the essentials like food, clothing and heating. The support of LadBaby and the Band Aid Trust will help food banks within our network continue to provide the lifeline of emergency support for local people in crisis, while we work in the long term to end the need for food banks, for good."
LadBaby's Christmas Number 1 career began in 2018 with We Built This City on Sausage Rolls, which debuted at number 1 in the UK Singles Chart. The couple, which have millions of followers across Facebook, Instagram and YouTube, then returned in 2019 with I Love Sausage Rolls.
In 2020 LadBaby equalled both The Beatles’ and Spice Girls’ records of three three consecutive number ones with their single ‘Don’t Stop Me Eatin’, a parody cover of ‘Don’t Stop Believin’ by Journey. They then went one better with a fourth record hit the following year featuring Ed Sheeran and Elton John, which was a rework of their own festive song Merry Christmas.
The couple, which have already raised more than £1.2 million for The Trussell Trust, added: "We never intended to release a fifth Christmas single but as ambassadors of The Trussell Trust we were not prepared to sit back and do nothing in a year when people are struggling more than ever.
"The Trussell Trust, which supports more than 1,300 food bank centres, has told us that the cost of living emergency has created a ‘tsunami of need’, as people struggle to survive amidst the soaring costs of living.
"Working households, families and disabled people are all really struggling."
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