// Asda calls on customers to donate vital food as it launches national food drive
// The month-long food donation drive is part of a Fight Hunger Create Change partnership with FareShare & the Trussell Trust
Asda has launched a national food drive, calling on generous customers to help people struggling with food essentials across the country.
With many people struggling to provide for their families, 382 Asda stores will take part in the month-long food drive in May.
The Big 4 grocer is encouraging customers to donate vital food and hygiene essentials as part of its Fight Hunger Create Change partnership with the FareShare and the Trussell Trust charities.
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Between April 1, 2020 and March 31, 2021 – essentially a full year of the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic that encompassed three lockdowns – a record 2.5 million emergency food parcels were given to people in crisis by food banks in the Trussell Trust’s network.
This marked a 33 per cent increase in need on the previous year, with almost a million of these parcels going to children.
Asda said 278,000 meals were donated throughout a month-long food donation drive in July last year, as customers and staff responded positively to new signposting in store that indicated the items most needed by their local food bank.
“As the impact of the pandemic continues to be felt in communities across the UK, families are struggling to access basic items like food and hygiene products,” Asda community senior director Jo Warner said.
“Our stores have permanent collection points year-round, but over the next month our aim is to boost the number of donations as we support our charity partners managing an increased need for emergency food parcels.
“I’m always overwhelmed by the generosity of our customers and colleagues, I wanted to thank them for continuing to support our Fight Hunger Create Change programme.
“It’s making a real difference to the families in their local communities, both in terms of providing much needed emergency support as well as longer term help through our funding of trained advisors on the ground helping people out of the situation they find themselves in.”
As part of the Fight Hunger Create Change partnership, Asda has been able to support more than one million people over three years by providing fresh food and access to support services to help people in crisis.
Through the £25 million donation Asda made to its charity partners over the past three years, £5.7 million was granted to food banks in the Trussell Trust’s network to provide services such as finance and debt advice.
Since 2018, Asda has enabled 100 million meals to be donated to people in crisis through building more capacity for their partner charities, donations from Asda depots and stores, and Covid-19 support to get more food to people during the pandemic.
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