“The mechanics of participation in the campaign are simple and well-known to the Portuguese: over the weekend of November 29 and 30, just (…) place non-perishable food products (milk, canned goods, olive oil, sugar, flour, pasta) in the Food Bank bag and thus share them with those in need”, reads the statement.
The campaign, which extends until December 7 through the website www.alimentestaideia.pt and the purchase of product vouchers available at supermarket checkouts, “calls for participation in this real social network that renews itself to help provide food to those in need with food contributions”.
Cited in the statement, the president of the Portuguese Federation of Food Banks Against Hunger, Isabel Jonet, explains that the donated products are then directed to the warehouses of the 21 Food Banks from the north to the south of the country, where they are weighed, sorted, and packaged.
“The result is locally distributed to people with food shortages, through more than 2,400 social solidarity institutions, previously selected and monitored in their daily activities”, states the official.
According to available information, last year the 21 Food Banks distributed 27,448 tons of food (with an estimated value of 45 million euros) to 2,400 institutions, with food being given to over 380,000 people with proven food shortages, in the form of food parcels or prepared meals.
The Food Bank was established in Portugal in 1991 with the mission to combat waste and provide support to those most in need of food, in partnership with solidarity institutions and based on volunteer work.
There are currently 21 Food Banks located in the regions of Abrantes, Algarve, Aveiro, Beja, Braga, Castelo Branco, Coimbra, Cova da Beira, Évora, Leiria-Fátima, Lisbon, Madeira, Zona Oeste, Portalegre, Porto, S. Miguel, Santarém, Setúbal, Terceira, Viana do Castelo, and Viseu.
