Coventry-based international development charity Feed The Hungry have today announced plans to bring together local businesses and other organisations to mark World Food Day on Saturday 16th October. ‘The BIG Food pack’, aims to bring together 32 teams from local businesses, charities and other organisations across the region to collaborate in sending a shipping container of 285,000 meals to children living below the poverty line in Zimbabwe.
‘The BIG Food Pack’ event will be held over six days in October and hopes to see businesses come together in teams of ten people to take up the challenge of packing as much food as they can over a two-hour shift, in addition to making a financial contribution to enable the container to reach Zimbabwe.
Director of Feed The Hungry, Gwyn Williams, says, “Over the last year, we have seen people from across Coventry and Warwickshire step up and help those most in need locally. As a charity, we are acutely aware of the devastating impact COVID continues to have in communities across the world, and even as our own lockdown ends, we are excited to see the local business community engage with Feed The Hungry’s mission to feed vulnerable children across the world”.
Food packing involves taking raw, dry ingredients - rice, soya, lentils and micronutrients - and putting them together in meal bags. These are then sealed,
boxed, palletised and sent by freight to one of Feed The Hungry’s trusted partners around the world. Teams work together to pack everything needed, but also helps businesses build their social responsibility programmes and camaraderie among staff.
Sarah was part of a team who joined a food packing event in 2019 with her employer, Coventry Business Society. Sarah now volunteers regularly with Feed The Hungry at Coventry Foodbank in her own time.
Sarah says, “I’m so grateful my company signed up to pack food with Feed The Hungry, it opened my eyes to the need in this city and in wider communities around the world and gave me the chance to give back to those in need. It was also great fun to do something with my team, that meant we could have fun together and build relationships with each other, while doing something that we knew would make a difference to people. I now volunteer with Feed The Hungry regularly because I enjoyed this experience so much and have been doing so for 2 years!”
Hunger and food insecurity have increased dramatically in Zimbabwe during COVID with 2.4 million people in urban areas struggling to meet their basic food needs. The need continues to grow as Zimbabwe remains in a severe lockdown. It is estimated that 38,000 children are currently suffering from acute malnutrition and 4.1milllion children are in need of urgent humanitarian assistance due to food insecurity and other health and safety concerns.
Feed The Hungry partner with the Zimbabwean charity The Joseph Foundation to ensure that food is provided to the children most in need. The meals are distributed through schools so that the children and young people who receive them are not only getting a hot meal, but also an education. Now, with the increased need and the disruption in provision caused by the pandemic, the need has never been greater.
If your business would be interested in getting involved, please find out more here: www.fth.org.uk/big-food-pack or call 01455 618455