Tesco has thanked its customers for their “incredible compassion” after revealing 900,000 meals-worth of food were collected for distribution by the Trussell Trust and FareShare, as a result of its special summer food collection.
Donations made by Tesco customers will help 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.
The Big 4 grocer also revealed it has topped up all the customer donations with an extra 20 per cent in cash to help the charities in their work.
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The heads of 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”.
“We are incredibly grateful to everyone who volunteered and every customer who donated items during this year’s Tesco Summer Food Collection,” Fareshare chief executive Lindsay Boswell said.
“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.”
Trussell Trust chief executive Emma Revie added: “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 grocer runs in support of the two charities.
“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,” said Tesco’s head of community Claire De Silva concluded.
“Our customers 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.”
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