Discounter B&M is donating £1m to support UK food banks struggling to cope during the coronavirus crisis.
Each of the retailer’s 670 stores will support a local food bank with £1,500 worth of food, cleaning and personal hygiene products.
It is urging food bank operators who wish to participate to register their details at bmstores.co.uk/news.
“B&M is immensely proud of the part it has played this last week in helping families buy food, cleaning goods and essential toiletries,” said CEO Simon Arora.
“We have served seven million shoppers in seven days, and our colleagues have worked tirelessly to keep shelves stocked.
“We realise, however, that many of the communities we serve have households in them that are really struggling to buy their groceries due to recent lay-offs. We hope that this donation at grassroots local level across the whole of the UK will allow some essential groceries to get to those who need them as quickly as possible.”
B&M said sales of toilet rolls had increased 300% in the past week, handwash was up 1,200%, tinned tuna sales climbed 583% and Pot Noodles jumped 610%.
Earlier this week, B&M said it had switched capacity at its six warehouses to prioritise key grocery lines including cleaning products and toiletries.
It has also created an additional 300 jobs at its depots in Speke and Bedford, with priority given to local applicants who have been recently laid off due to the crisis.
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