Generous Tesco shoppers in Torbay, Teignbridge and the South Hams have been thanked for their ‘incredible compassion’ after donating food to children and families this summer.
Thanks to their donations during a special summer Tesco Food Collection, 1,714 meals were donated by customers across South Devon as part of a UK-wide total of 900,000 meals’ worth of food collected for distribution by the Trussell Trust and FareShare.
The food collected will help the Trussell Trust provide emergency food parcels to families in crisis and help FareShare support thousands of frontline groups working to feed children and families across the country. Tesco has topped up all the customer donations with an extra 20% in cash to help the charities in their work.
Both charities praised all those who donated and volunteered during the collection, saying they had been humbled by the generosity which so many had shown.
Julian Mines, CEO at FareShare South West, said: “We are incredibly grateful to everyone who volunteered and every customer who donated items during this year’s Tesco Summer Food Collection. It was wonderful to see so many passionate people lending a hand to support.
“The donations we receive through the food collection are vital and will be redistributed by FareShare to charities and community organisations working with people across the UK.”
Emma Revie, Chief Executive at the Trussell Trust said: “Thanks to the incredible compassion and generosity of Tesco customers during the Tesco Summer Food Collection, food banks in our network have been able to offer emergency food parcels to thousands of families in crisis throughout the summer months, while we work in the long term to build a hunger free future.
“We have been truly humbled to see how much people have been willing to give to food banks this summer, as our nationwide network of food banks do all they can to help families meet the extra financial pressures of the holiday period.”
The summer collection was held in addition to the annual pre-Christmas Tesco Food Collection which the supermarket holds to support the two charities.
Tesco’s Head of Community, Claire De Silva, said: “Having seen the pressures that both charities are facing we know that food donations are more vital than ever, and we know every single meal donated will make a difference to someone’s life, so we are glad we have been able to support with an additional collection this year.
“Our customers in South Devon have shown amazing support once again, and we will continue to work closely with both charities to help them in the crucial work they do across the UK.”
Customers can continue to support FareShare and the Trussell Trust by donating at permanent collection points at all large Tesco stores, or by donating Tesco Clubcard points to help them in their work.
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