For its 40th distribution campaign, Restos du coeur intends to “prioritize the most vulnerable groups”. The figures on the children assisted by the association are heartbreaking.
This is “another increasing figure” deplores the association founded by Coluche: 128,000 babies aged 0 to 3 were “supported” during the 39th Restos du coeur campaign, an increase of 1.6% compared to to last year. But considering the last report of the United Nations children’s agency (UNICEF) on the inequalities present among the youngest, this statistic is far from surprising. In fact, of the 20,000 French children surveyed, a fifth say they do not eat three meals a day. Enough to largely justify the decision of Fabrice Douret, the president of the association, to “prioritize the most vulnerable groups, in particular single-parent families and children under three years old”.
The number of single-parent families using food distribution has increased significantly, reaching a quarter of the association’s beneficiaries. Among them, 40% were under 18 years old. This means that nearly 500,000 minors, children or adolescents, are among the beneficiaries. Let us add that 10% of those assisted are between 18 and 24 years old, 43% between 25 and 59 years old and 8% over 60 years old. In total, the Restos du coeur, which provide 35% of food aid, welcomed 1.3 million people between 2023 and 2024, a stable figure, coinciding with the data from the previous campaign.
An astonishing constant considering the new restrictions brought by the association. For the first time in its 40 years of existence, it was obliged to modify the level of income qualifying for food aid to compensate for the extent of its forecast deficit. As a result, only 163,000 meals were distributed during the years 2023-2024, compared to 171,000 in 2022-2023. In total, they “refused food aid to more than 110,000 people who would have been entitled to it under the previous criteria”.
The rebirth of Restos du coeur
Faced with the scale of its logistics and food expenses, the association had to sound the alarm by launching an appeal for donations. A surge of solidarity spread among the French who contributed 32 million euros, 10 million of which were contributed by the family of Bernard Arnaud, the owner of the LVMH group. As for the State, which already usually provides 15% of the association’s budget, it donated 8 million euros. By responding to the call, the French allowed Restos du coeur to improve its cash flow. In addition to the application of rights restrictions, they went from a forecast deficit of 35 million euros to a surplus of 22 million euros.
Even if a return to the level of activity of 2022 is unlikely, Patrice Drouet already announces reopening “a certain number of social action taps”. The launch of this 40th campaign is therefore placed under the sign of celebration, with the return of the ephemeral marquee which hosted the very first campaign. Located in Gennevilliers, north of Paris, it has already received a visit from the Minister of Solidarity Paul Christophe and the Prime Minister Michel Barnier. During his speech, the latter was also full of praise for the volunteers and employees of Restos du coeur: “They are the honor of the Republic,” he said.