Asda is creating a new cereal range to feed families in food poverty, with nearly 200 tonnes to be distributed over the summer holidays.
The donation is part of Asda’s partnership with the food industry body Alliance Food Sourcing and redistribution charity Felix.
It said the cereal was being produced and packed during quieter hours at Asda’s Telford factory, before being distributed nationally via Felix’s depots and its 16 independent network partners.
Asda’s move is the latest targeted help for families as part of the strategy and comes after The Grocer revealed last month that Princes, Waitrose, Felix and Alliance Food Sourcing had joined forces to produce one million tins of baked beans for people facing food insecurity this summer.
Cans of Branston Baked Beans will be distributed through Felix’s network of over 8,000 community organisations, schools, food banks and community kitchens.
Earlier this week, leading supermarket bosses said they had put traditional rivalries aside to issue a social media appeal for companies to support Alliance Food Sourcing efforts.
The call was backed by Simon Roberts, CEO of Sainsbury’s; Gordon Gafa, managing director of UK food at Tesco; Alex Freudmann, managing director of food at M&S; Tom Denyard, managing director of Waitrose; and Rami Baitiéh, CEO of Morrisons.
In a survey by Felix of 4,000 working families, nearly one in 10 people said they had to send their children to school knowing they were hungry, at least once a week.
The project forms part of the wider work of Alliance Food Sourcing, which brings together major UK food businesses to redirect surplus food and resources into charity supply chains.
Earlier this year, Asda and its wholly owned subsidiary IPL donated 420 tonnes of fresh fruit & vegetables – equivalent to around one million meals – to Felix.
Max Hilliard, managing director of IPL operations at Asda, said: “Too many families are facing the reality of children going without a proper breakfast, particularly during the summer holidays when household budgets come under greater pressure. Through this donation, we can help ensure fewer families have to go without a proper breakfast.
“We’re proud to be working alongside Alliance Food Sourcing and Felix, using our own-label products and manufacturing capacity to create a breakfast cereal specifically for redistribution to ensure good food reaches vulnerable communities rather than going to waste.”
Felix CEO Charlotte Hill said: “Sadly it’s not only during term time that families are unable to afford a good breakfast, we know that during the holidays many parents are faced with further financial pressures. With schools closed children have no access to breakfast clubs or free school meals so parents have to pay extra to cover those meals. This support from Asda to AFS and Felix will ensure thousands of children get a healthier and balanced breakfast helping them to kickstart their day in the right way.”
Nicola Robinson, director of Alliance Food Sourcing, added: “A huge thank you to Asda for adapting their processes, to turn factory downtime into a good breakfast for people who most need it. It will be enjoyed and appreciated across the UK. Often relatively small changes in the UK food supply chain can make a big difference to what we can offer frontline charities.”
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