There is no halt to poverty in Italy: complicit with inflation and the rising cost of living, the most fragile families and people are increasingly struggling. Already more than 10,000 people have asked the 20 Franciscan soup kitchens of Operazione Pane non-profit campaign for help with a hot meal and support with daily expenses in 2023. These are numbers that, placed in the context of Istat data, according to which there were more than 5.6 million individuals in absolute poverty in 2022, give a measure of the gravity of the situation. Among those who ask for help from the Operazione Pane soup kitchens, lonely people in particular are on the rise: in 2023 there were more than 7,300, 6 percent more than last year; but there are also many families, and therefore children, who must rely on the help of the brothers to put a meal on the table. In 2023 the soup kitchens are supporting more than 1,400 families, consisting of more than 750 moms, 650 dads and 1,400 children. Nationwide, in 2022, there were 2.18 million families in absolute poverty and 1.27 million children in this situation.