Aldi stores in Gaywood and Fakenham donate food to good causes at Christmas

Supermarket retailer Aldi with stores in Gaywood and Fakenham joined forces with charities and community groups to share out unsold fresh and chilled food after its stores closed on Christmas Eve.

The Purfleet Food Project in Lynn and EP Youth Ltd, of Fakenham, which works with young people and their families in north Norfolk, were among ten charitable causes to benefit in the county.

Throughout the UK, Aldi donated around 210 tonnes of food, with more than 500,000 meals gifted and over 750 causes benefitting from the initiative in total.

The donation is Aldi’s largest to date and it helped at a time when more people are experiencing financial hardship and food insecurity due to Covid-19.

The initiative is also being extended to New Year’s Eve, when Aldi expects to donate a further 200,000 meals to charitable causes across the country.

Aldi has also worked with partner Neighbourly to prioritise donations to charities and community groups focused on feeding children over the school Christmas holidays.

The festive food donations are part of Aldi’s successful partnership with Neighbourly, a community giving platform that links businesses to charitable organisations. Thanks to this, all of Aldi’s 900 UK stores now donate surplus food to good causes seven days a week, all year round.

Luke Peech, managing director of corporate responsibility at Aldi UK, said: “We’re proud to support good causes in Norfolk this festive period, helping them to provide fresh and filling meals.

“The feedback has been overwhelming and we’re really pleased to have extended the initiative, so we can do what we can for those in need within the community in what was an incredibly tough year for so many.”

Steve Butterworth, from Neighbourly, added: “Sadly, this festive season has been the busiest on record for the nation’s charities and food banks. I’m sure Aldi’s donation has been a lifeline for many.”