Cancer Research UK and Tesco are celebrating £75m raised to support the charity over its 25-year partnership.

Beginning in 2001, colleagues and customers at Tesco have backed the charity through fundraising, awareness campaigns and community initiatives to help raise funds for cancer research.

As part of the collaboration, funds were raised through bake sales, prize draws and bucket collections for marathons, treks and golf days.

Additionally, the supermarket retailer has supported major Cancer Research UK initiatives, including being the headline sponsor for Race for Life over 20 years, which encouraged millions of people to take part in the event.

Ashwin Prasad, UK CEO at Tesco, said: “This partnership means so much to all of us at Tesco. For 25 years, our colleagues and customers have shown incredible generosity and energy in supporting Cancer Research UK, helping to raise an extraordinary £75 million for life-saving research.

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“Together, we’ve done far more than just raise funds. We’ve worked alongside Cancer Research UK on campaigns to encourage people to get potential cancer symptoms checked, helping raise awareness and support earlier diagnosis. We’ve also joined forces to champion healthier choices and call for mandatory reporting of healthy food sales across the food industry, helping drive wider change for the nation’s health.”

Tesco has also worked with the charity to raise cancer awareness in stores and pharmacies, which helps customers access information and encourages earlier checking of possible cancer symptoms.

Over 20,000 Tesco colleagues have participated in the Cancer Awareness in the Workplace programme since 2018.