How Tesco customers in Northampton can help to provide millions of meals to feed children this summer

Supermarket, Tesco has launched a UK-wide scheme that will enable Northampton customers to help them provide up to three million meals for children.

Tesco has announced today (July 20) that they will be making a donation for every piece of fresh fruit and vegetables bought in its Northampton stores from July 19 to August 8 in their 'Buy One to Help a Child' scheme.

The three-week campaign aims to provide up to three million meals for Tesco's charity partner, FareShare, to redistribute to charities and local community groups supporting children.

The new scheme has been warmly welcomed by FareShare Chief Executive, Lindsay Boswell CBE, who said it would help the food redistributor supply thousands of groups working with children and families across the UK.

He said: “In the last year, FareShare has doubled the amount of food we’re providing to people struggling to get enough to eat. While the lockdown may be easing, we know that food insecurity remains high.

“That’s why we are so pleased to see Tesco and its customers helping us to support children who need it. It will make a huge difference to so many people that have been affected by the pandemic.”

A study carried out by Food Foundation last year revealed that 2.3 million children in the UK live in households that have experienced food insecurity in a six-month period, a situation that has worsened during the pandemic.

The new ‘Buy One to Help a Child’ scheme builds on Tesco’s existing food redistribution programme with FareShare, which - last year - saw Tesco provide over 29 million meals of surplus food.

Tesco has been working with FareShare since 2016, and has redistributed more than 120 million meals of food to charities and community groups across the UK to date.

FareShare supports frontline charities and community groups working with children – from summer holiday clubs and breakfast clubs, to community kitchens and groups which supply food parcels to those facing food insecurity.

Tesco UK and ROI CEO, Jason Tarry, said: “We wanted to find a really simple way to do our bit and help our customers do the same.

"We hope Buy One to Help A Child will encourage healthier choices for our customers at the same time as helping to feed children who need it most, so we can continue to help support the communities in which we live and work.”

Tesco is a member of the Child Poverty Task Force, formed by Marcus Rashford, and continues to support his campaign for free school meals for every child that needs them, at any time.

Marcus Rashford MBE, said: "We all have a role to play in the community and I’m so grateful to Tesco for stepping up to support vulnerable children and families through a difficult time.

"Whilst collectively we have made progress, numbers are continuing to rise of children going without meals.

"The Buy One to Help a Child campaign will make a huge difference to the thousands of families who are struggling at the moment to put food on the table.”

To find out more about the work carried out by FareShare, visit their website at: https://fareshare.org.uk/