Thank you for cooperating with GroceryAid

Sir, I was delighted to read Steve Parfett’s opinion piece in The Grocer regarding ‘The merits of cooperation’ (22 July, p26). I welcome his supportive comments on the valuable contribution GroceryAid is making to help those in need in our industry.

Our recently published Annual Review highlights that in the last year we assisted 14,000 grocery people and spent a record £4.5m on welfare support. We continue to see a steep rise in applications for support - up 33% since the start of our year.

Now more than ever we need to be there for grocery colleagues who have made our trade one of the most admired in the world. I am profoundly grateful for the support that we receive from many companies and individuals across the supply chain - thank you.

However, there remain companies that have not yet found a way to support GroceryAid so do get in touch - we are there for your colleagues, please be there for us.

We are the national charity for grocery people and we are proud of the difference we make to the lives of thousands every day.

Steve Barnes, chief executive, GroceryAid