Our £20 million Fight Hunger Create Change campaign has paid for food charity FareShare to relocate their Newcastle warehouse to a bigger site that will help them provide fresh food to thousands more local people in need.
Our Boldon store's community champion Tracey Tough was one of our colleagues who joined the FareShare team for the day to officially open the distribution hub in Westerhope.
The funding has also paid for a new chiller and freezer at the warehouse, and a new van and forklift truck.
It's the latest in a series of big initiatives with FareShare and the Trussell Trust as we invest at least £20 million over the next three years as part of the Asda Fight Hunger Create Change programme to help lift a million people out of food poverty.
Tracey said: "The difference this new warehouse will make to so many people is amazing. To see the importance of the Fight Hunger funding and how it's benefitting so many people makes me very proud to work for Asda.
"It was very eye-opening. I've been involved in helping out foodbanks, community cafes and all sorts of local groups for a long time but there were things FareShare do that I didn't know about."
Jake Hanmore, general manager at FareShare North East, said: “FareShare North East currently saves almost six tonnes of food from waste each week, which in turn helps to provide around 14,000 meals to people in need – an astonishing figure which shows our commitment to fighting hunger and food waste.
"Each week we help to feed thousands at risk of hunger in our communities, but we know demand for our support is rising - which is why we welcome Asda’s generous investment.
"We’re grateful we are in a position to help more people, and if you would like to get involved either by donating, providing food or registering as a charity member, we encourage you to get in touch."
Chris Hall, senior director of central logistics at Asda, said: "By bringing FareShare and the Trussell Trust together and investing in their infrastructure and essential services, we can help thousands more vulnerable people in the North East and millions nationwide access good quality fresh food.
"Ultimately, our aim is to change the face of food poverty in this country and make sure nobody goes hungry, whilst also working to tackle the root causes of poverty in the UK."
Our Asda Fight Hunger Create Change campaign is donating £20 million to The Trussell Trust and FareShare over three years to help people out of food poverty. Find out more here.
