Rising rents are pushing low-income families to the brink as they are left with little money to buy food, according to food bank administrator Reverend Kim Hurst.

Interviewed by senior journalist Kurt Sansone, she says since its inception in 2015 the food bank saw many more people afflicted by the phenomenon of rising rents.

The food bank is found at the St Andrew’s Scotts church in Valletta and last year alone provided 800 food parcels to people in need.

Rev. Kim speaks of the hidden poverty caused by a myriad of social, economic and health problems afflicting people.

“A woman lives off cornflakes because she cannot afford the heating,” she says of one of the many cases the foodbank encounters.

Relationship breakdowns and sudden expenses caused by serious illness in the family are other causes of poverty, Rev. Kim says.

The food bank in Old Bakery Street risks closure as its supplies are drying out.

Watch the full interview in the video above.