Aldi has officially donated 30 million meals to local communities since launching its food donations initiative in 2019.
In partnership with community giving platform Neighbourly, all of the German discounter’s 990 stores in the UK contribute surplus food to foodbanks and charities all-year round.
As a result of the successful partnership, more than 4,000 good causes have now benefitted from the scheme, including soup kitchens and children’s breakfast clubs.
Subscribe to Grocery Gazette for free
Sign up here to get the latest grocery and food news each morning
The milestone follows Aldi’s donation of £250,000 to Neighbourly ahead of the Christmas period, launching its Emergency Winter Foodbank Fund to further support increased demand on these organisations.
Aldi has also recently extended its partnership with Company Shop Group to help excess stock from its network of Regional Distribution Centres be redistributed to community stores across the UK.
“Hitting 30 million meals donated through our partnership with Neighbourly is an amazing achievement, with the initiative now more vital than ever for local community groups and charities who face soaring demand,” corporate responsibility director at Aldi UK, Liz Fox said.
She added: “We’re committed to doing all that we can to support people in the communities where we trade, and through our partnership with Neighbourly we have helped to make food more accessible for all.”
Steve Butterworth, CEO of Neighbourly, commented: “We’ve worked with Aldi for several years to help them further their support for those in need.
“The cost-of-living crisis is impacting communities up and down the country and we’ve seen the demand on foodbanks and local causes increase drastically since our partnership began.
“The support of the public and businesses like Aldi makes a huge difference. We know the donations have helped thousands of charities, community groups and families in need.”
The news comes as Aldi has been named the cheapest supermarket for a basket of 48 groceries in 2022, costing £81.63 last month.
