Aldi Is Handing Out All It’s Unsold Fresh Food To The Needy On Christmas Eve

Aldi Is Handing Out All It’s Unsold Fresh Food To The Needy On Christmas Eve

Aldi said in a statement on social media that it will give any of its unsold fresh food to local organizations on Christmas Eve.

“As Aldi stores will shut at 4 pm on Christmas Eve until December 27, they will have a variety of good quality surplus food products that they will wish to redistribute in support of less fortunate individuals and to prevent food going to waste.”

They urged organizations across the country to collect the leftover food from before the shops close for the holiday.

“Aldi is unable to deliver products so it would be essential that your organization is able to collect. They will expect the level of food available to vary, however, estimations of around 20 to 30 crates will be expected from each store.”

Food For Families In Need

The company started the Christmas Eve gesture in 2017 and will continue to contribute to the community. In 2017, 300 Aldi stores supported 3350 charities, which translated to 460,000 meals for people in need. In 2018, 500 stores supported 500 charities, resulting in almost 500,000 meals.

Aldi partnered with Neighbourly, a community engagement platform that links businesses to charitable organizations, in early 2019. Their hope was to have an even greater impact. Now 95% of their branches have been able to donate food 5 days a week, all year round. This Christmas Eve initiative allows even more people to access food that would probably go to waste.

Charities will pair with a local Aldi and will be able to collect fresh foods nearing the end of their shelf life. They donated a little under half a million meals to charities across the United Kingdom in 2018. The goal is to increase the number of meals in 2019.

Holiday Cheer & Less Food Waste

Food waste along the supply chain and at the consumer level is a large problem in Europe and North America. (2) When Aldi first started their Christmas initiative in 2017, social media loved it. People reached out and urged other chains to do the same. To waste less food and to do give it to people who need it.

Fritz Walleczek, Managing Director of Corporate Responsibility at Aldi UK said, “Our Christmas food donation scheme is something we’re really passionate about, and we’re working with Neighbourly this year to pair as many stores up as possible.” (3)

“Last year we were able to reach thousands of people across the UK, and some charities were even able to prepare fresh meals that fed families well into the New Year. This is our third year of Christmas food donations and we’re hoping this year will be just as successful, and we look forward to working with local charities and food banks in the future.” (3)

If you are a charitable organization, email aldi@neighbourly.com and they will check capacity in your area.