Sainsbury’s contributes £3 million to combat food insecurity this holiday season.

Sainsbury’s contributes £3 million to combat food insecurity this holiday season.

Launching its Nourish the Nation program, Sainsbury’s has a long-term goal of assisting communities with access to food both today and in the future.

To support communities this Christmas, Sainsbury’s will donate £1.5 million to longtime partner Comic Relief, FareShare, and significant redistribution partners.
When shopping in-person or online, Sainsbury’s is encouraging customers who are able to donate to do so. The firm will match donations up to £1.5 million.
The funds donated will help people most impacted by the growing cost of living by providing food and immediate support when it launches on November 23.
As 13.7 million people in the UK struggle to afford food, Sainsbury’s will donate £3 million to those in need; the money will be evenly distributed between supporting communities with access to food now and supporting projects that help prevent people and communities from falling further into food poverty in the future.

Nourish the Nation is a long-term program that the retailer has launched in response to the rising cost of living. It is a collaboration with longtime charity partner Comic Relief and will fund initiatives to combat food insecurity and guarantee that communities have access to balanced, nutritious, and sustainable food sources both now and in the future.

Sainsbury’s is asking customers to donate if they can as part of the campaign between November 23 and December 24 and has promised to match donations up to £1.5 million, with the money going to Comic Relief.

Customers can donate to Comic Relief in-person, online, or both in-store and in-store at Argos and Sainsbury’s to support the Nourish the Nation program. They can also donate Nectar points. A gift of £1 may assist a child purchase fruit and a nutritious snack, and a donation of £5 could help feed a youngster for an entire day at a community center during school breaks. The money raised will benefit individuals all around the country. *** Food donations made by customers at food donation stations located throughout the store will be sent to local food charity partners.

Sainsbury’s is already supporting Feeding Britain and The Bread and Butter Thing this year through its collaboration with Comic Relief in an effort to reduce food poverty in areas that most need it.

In order to create community-based projects that assist low-income families before they reach a point of crisis and need to rely on food banks, Feeding Britain collaborates with regional food networks. Four food clubs will receive help from Sainsbury’s funding in Glasgow, Gateshead, London, and Nottinghamshire. With a combination of affordable fresh ingredients for families to take home, cooking classes, and wraparound support to maximize family incomes, manage debts and budgeting, and mitigate the effects of food waste, each club seeks to prevent hunger, reduce food waste, and ultimately lift people out of poverty.

The Bread and Butter Thing operates more than 75 mobile food clubs that are distributed in collaboration with neighborhood community centers and give those who are struggling financially easy access to wholesome, high-quality food at reasonable prices. They offer comprehensive support to members, including guidance on debt, spending plans, and employment abilities. In order to combat loneliness, boost confidence, and lay the groundwork for people to escape food insecurity, The Bread and Butter Thing helps members interact with their community. The Bread and Butter Thing will broaden its impact with help from Sainsbury’s by increasing support in the East Midlands, South Yorkshire, and the North West to make sure communities in some of the most impoverished areas have access to quality and affordable food.

In addition to this, Sainsbury’s is donating a further £1.5 million to key food distribution networks, with £500k going to longstanding partner FareShare through Comic Relief’s On the Breadline Winter cost-of-living Christmas appeal which will provide funding for the equivalent of 2 million meals to those living in food poverty across the UK.

Support for those experiencing food poverty has never been more crucial, according to Ruth Cranston, Director of Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability at Sainsbury’s. She noted that the months ahead will be more difficult. In order to ensure that everyone has access to the food they need right now while also assisting in preventing those who are most at risk from experiencing food insecurity in the future, we have launched our new community program Nourish the Nation because we are aware of how challenging the rising cost of living is for so many communities across the nation.

We are committed to helping the communities we serve, and through our extensive work with our longtime partners Comic Relief and FareShare, as well as our support of regional initiatives with Feeding Britain and The Bread and Butter Thing, we hope to help vulnerable communities across the nation in the near future and beyond.

“Right now, communities throughout the UK need our support more than ever as the growing cost of living drives people to the breaking point,” said Samir Patel, CEO of Comic Relief. Families worry about what the winter may bring since they already have to make difficult choices. The need to combat food insecurity has never been greater, so we are happy to be collaborating with Sainsburys on this crucial new initiative to assist those who are most in need.

“We’re tremendously thankful for the wonderful contribution from Sainsbury’s through Comic Relief’s Cost of Living Appeal,” said Lindsay Boswell, CEO of FareShare. Their gift will enable us to distribute more nutritious excess food to UK residents who are most affected by the rising cost of living. This money will significantly impact the people we help who are experiencing food poverty at a time when the demand for our food has soared.

Since 1999, Sainsbury’s has been an official partner of Comic Relief, helping to raise approximately £153 million to aid those in need both in the UK and abroad. Together, Sainsbury’s and Comic Relief have been able to assist 13 million individuals worldwide and more than 1.6 million people in the UK.

Applications for the organization’s Helping Everyone Eat Better Community awards, which have won a total of £338k in funding, will open on December 9th. The grants provide funding to regional organizations that fight food insecurity, as chosen by each particular store.

With the goal of minimizing food waste, Sainsbury’s has now introduced Neighbourly to all of its retail locations. Neighbourly links stores with neighborhood charities. The Neighbourly alliance has given 7 million meals thus far.

Sainsbury’s

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