Kind-hearted Algarve shoppers donated a staggering 140 tonnes of food last weekend in the ‘Banco Alimentar Contra a Fome’ promotion that saw thousands of volunteers collecting outside the region’s supermarkets.
For the whole of Portugal the total was pretty much the same as last year and food bank president Isabel Jonet thanked the Portuguese people and volunteers for their generosity.
Especially in the south it seems, as the amount donated across the Algarve went up 4% despite recession and austerity biting deep into household incomes.
The food bank manager for the Algarve said he was proud to be trusted by the Algarve people and promised to continue working to “help those who really need it.”
Around 42,000 volunteers collected donations at over 2,000 outlets across the country and the food will be delivered to 2,600 charity outlets which support over 425,000 people, some 4% of the population who do not have enough money to feed themselves properly.
The initiative was part of a larger campaign which saw 264 food banks across Europe collect food for those in need.