Customers at a North Yorkshire supermarket have done their bit to make Christmas special for those in need.
They donated 40 large boxes of festive foodstuffs to Catterick Tesco’s Neighbourhood Food Collection.
Richmond MP Rishi Sunak called at the store in Richnondshire Walk to help with the packing and meet the Catterick’s store staff.
He joined Tesco’s local services local services manager Rebecca Barret and store assistant Kevin Meads to find out about the collection.
Mr Sunak praised the customers’ generosity and Tesco for the initiative.
He said: “It’s wonderful that as customers have been doing their Christmas shopping they put aside some of their festive fare for those who may not be so fortunate.
“This year, the Tesco collection will provide more than 2.8 million meals to people in need across the country and that’s a great achievement”
Tesco, along with food bank charity The Trussell Trust and food redistribution charity FareShare, have been behind the collection and it is aiming to provide at least five million meals to help feed people in need over the winter.
The Neighbourhood Food Collection, which launched in 2012, is part of Tesco’s ongoing effort to encourage customers to donate long-life food to charity. Tesco tops up the customer donations by 20 per cent.
Since the launch It has collected the equivalent of more than 38 million meals which have been donated to people in need by Tesco customers.
Miss Barrett said: “It’s so great to witness the generosity of our customers each time we hold a Neighbourhood Food Collection.
"That’s especially true at Christmas, when the Trussell Trust and FareShare see an increase in demand for the support they provide people.
Both The Trussell Trust and FareShare see an increase in the need for support during the winter, with the extra cost of heating that comes with the cold weather adding another pressure for families who are struggling to make ends meet.
The latest step in Tesco’s work with FareShare is the Community Food Connection programme, which links stores to local charities and community groups to ensure that no food that is safe for human consumption goes to waste.
Tesco hopes to roll this out to all its UK stores by the end of 2017.