Tesco's Neighbourhood Food Collection Raises A Record 4.3 Million Meals by Benson Agoha

The Neighbourhood Food Collection, organised by Tesco and some Foodbank Charities between Friday, November 29th and Sunday December 1, 2013, raised 4.3 million meals for people in need this Christmas.
>* Neighbourhood Food Collection raised 32,000 trolley-loads of food.

The release said, the research carried out by Opinion Matters using a sample of 4,000 adults across the UK, brings cheering news to the many families experiencing hardships and who can't afford to buy food over the festive season.

The event took place in every Tesco store across the United Kingdom and the total collection equated 32,000 trolley-loads of food after the High Stree retailer contributed the 30% top up food it promised, Tesco said.

Tesco said in the past year, the supermarket and their customers have donated a total of 10.2 million meals to charities.

Volunteers at the Tesco Extra Store at Lovelane, Woolwich included Police Cadets, and others from the Trussell Trust, FareShare Charies. Later, Tesco staff also joined the team

When Woolwich Online checked at the Store on Sunday 1st December, a Tesco Duty Manager and another colleague were wearing branded aprons and helping with the collection.

Tesco said the food which weighs about 1,800 tonnes, will now be transported to regional FareShare depots and local foodbanks across the country to help people in times of need this Christmas.

When asked Alan Robinson, the coordinator of the Greenwich Foodbank for the Royal Borough of Greenwich, about the food will be distributed, he said that identified families in need will be provided with foodbank vouchers which they will use to collect their food from the depots.

Although the collection at the Tesco Extra, woolwich was very successful, Tesco said it was a store in Liverpool that collected the most food - the second time the Park Road Extra will achieve the feet.

According to a news release by Tesco, the store collected an incredible 22,874 meals when Tesco’s 30% top up was added... "the support for the Neighbourhood Food Collection reached record levels across the UK, but customers at Park Road Extra in Liverpool proved to be the most generous store for the second collection in a row", the grocer said.

For enquiries on the Neighbourhood Food Collection please contact Devries SLAM on 0844 8751483; Email: nfc@devries-slam.com or Emma Capon in the Tesco press office on 01992 644 645; Email: emma.capon@uk.tesco.com.

* Twitter: @bensonagoha.

* Twitter: @woolwichonline.