The Community Shop Christmas lunch-08 (copy)

Source: Aldi/Community Shop

A Community Shop Christmas lunch

Aldi is to give away 2,000 free Christmas dinners in low-income areas, in partnership with Company Shop.

The discounter is working with the food redistribution group’s Community Shop, a social enterprise providing meals in low-income communities.

It follows a similar initiative by Aldi last year, in which it also gave away 2,000 meals in the run-up to Christmas.

Community Shop members will be invited to a three-course Christmas meal at their local hub, hosted each day from 17 to 19 December.

Aldi surplus is also sold at discounted prices to Company Shop members throughout the year. The supermarket has partnered with the surplus retailer since 2022, in a collaboration that sees food redistributed from Aldi distribution centres.

As part of this year’s Christmas initiative, Bernard Matthews will be donating turkeys.

“For the past two years, we’ve partnered with Company Shop Group to redistribute surplus stock from our regional distribution centres, making our groceries even more affordable for Community Shop members,” said Aldi UK national sustainability director Luke Emery.

“This is our second year supporting the Christmas lunch and we’re going to be providing even more free festive dinners to those in need. The festive season can be expensive, but this initiative allows members to celebrate without worrying about the associated cost.”

Community Shop executive chairman Gary Stott said: “We’re incredibly grateful to Aldi for its continued generosity. Many of our members are feeling the pressures of Christmas, and events like these not only spread festive cheer but also bring communities together during challenging times.”