Aldi provided 394 meals to people in need over the Easter school holidays after pairing up with local charities in the Scottish Borders.
The retailer teamed up with community groups, local charities and food banks to donate surplus food, making the most of unsold fresh and chilled food throughout the Easter period.
The donations followed research from Aldi and community-giving platform Neighbourly which found that 98% of food banks in Scotland have seen demand soar since the start of the year.
Around 105 tonnes of food were donated throughout the UK, with more than 187,000 meals going to causes focused on supporting families and children.
On average, food banks in the region reported an average rise in demand of around 28% for their services so far this year, with expectations of further increases of around 29% in the next three months as higher energy bills and an increase in national insurance contributions add to the pressure.
Liz Fox, Corporate Responsibility Director at Aldi UK, said: “The school holidays can be a busy time for the local charities and organisations we support, but, especially in the current climate, food banks are experiencing even greater demand than usual.
“We’re proud to support so many good causes in the Scottish Borders, helping them to provide meals to those in need over the recent school holidays.”
Steve Butterworth, from Neighbourly, added: “The findings of our latest survey highlight that the cost-of-living crisis is clearly deepening, with families and households up and down the country really starting to feel the pinch and turning to charities and local causes for support as a result.
“During what is a hard time for everyone, anything people can do to give back in the coming weeks will make all the difference.”
