Volunteers needed in Exeter for Christmas food collection

Leading charities the Trussell Trust and FareShare are appealing to people in Exeter to volunteer to help in the UK’s biggest food collection for people in need.

From 21-23 November, the two charities will be collecting food in Exeter’s Tesco stores during the annual Tesco Food Collection. They are looking for local volunteers to encourage shoppers to donate so that as much food as possible can be collected.

During the collection, customers are encouraged to donate long-life food to help food banks and community groups support people in need at Christmas. Tesco will top up customer donations by 20% to further support the two charities in their work.

Last year, 3.5 million meals were collected as part of the Tesco Food Collection and, since its launch in 2012, more than 50 million meals have been donated to the two charities by generous Tesco customers.

To make this year’s collection a success, volunteers are needed to hand out shopping lists to customers so they can see the food items most needed by food banks and community groups in their area, and to encourage people to donate.

Emma Revie, chief executive at The Trussell Trust, said: “No one should need a food bank at any time of year – but we know during the lead-up to Christmas our network of food banks see even more people needing help. 

“Food banks will be doing all they can to provide vital emergency support so that people don’t face hunger this Christmas. But to make sure there are enough donations, we need your support. 

“Having your support in this year’s Tesco Food Collection will make a real difference – the more people who volunteer, the more food will be collected from generous shoppers, and the better prepared food banks will be to help local people.”

People interested in volunteering can find out more and sign up at www.fareshare/tescofoodcollection