Food for good: Sainsbury’s announces new initiative to tackle food poverty

Sainsbury’s will donate 50p to Comic Relief for every product sold from its Inspired to Cook range

• Through its Nourish the Nation programme, in partnership with Comic Relief, Sainsbury’s hopes to inspire its customers to cook tonight to help prevent food poverty now and in the future
• Sainsbury’s will donate 50p from every product sold from its Inspired to Cook range from 31^st May until 11^th July
• The retailer aims to donate at least £3 million to Comic Relief to support local food clubs and fund initiatives to prevent people falling into food poverty now and in the future

Sainsbury’s will donate 50p from every product sold in its Inspired to Cook range between now and 11^th July to Comic Relief as part of the retailer’s Nourish the Nation initiative to help tackle food poverty.

Every 50p donated by Sainsbury’s will help fund the provision of healthy food to families who are struggling in the UK via the Comic Relief-backed initiative. It is hoped that this six-week donation drive will contribute at least £3 million to the Nourish the Nation programme, which helps fund action designed to tackle food insecurity and ensure communities have improved access to balanced and nutritional food they need in the UK and around the world.

Sainsbury’s Inspired to Cook range is designed to help customers cook easy and enjoyable home meals. Now, thanks to the charitable donations from the range, customers can not only cook tasty dishes at home, but they can also help those most in need of support. With over 200 different products, the range includes condiments, fresh herb mixes and easy sauces for simple home cooking.

To support the initiative and inspire shoppers to get cooking at home using the range, Sainsbury’s has unveiled five new dinner-time recipes that aim to remove some of the traditional barriers from home cooking such as time, effort and lack of inspiration.

The recipes are perfect for those looking to change up their regular weeknight dinners, while still being healthy and nutritious. The easy and convenient recipes include Harissa Chicken Traybake, Filo Veg Tart, Teriyaki Stir Fry, Jerk Chicken or Tofu Salad and Beef or Meat-Free Tacos. The recipes will be featured on the website making it easy for customers to purchase all the ingredients they need to make these mid-week meals.

Sainsbury’s Nourish the Nation programme kicked off last November with a £1.5million donation to Comic Relief, Fareshare and other key redistribution partners to support those in need, as well as a pledge to match customer donations up to £1.5million.

The initiative, which builds on the retailer’s longstanding partnership with Comic Relief, supports organisations such as Feeding Britain and The Bread and Butter Thing in their work to help alleviate food poverty in communities across the country.

Ruth Cranston, Director of Corporate Responsibility and Sustainability at Sainsbury’s, said: 

“We are so proud to see the positive impact that the Nourish the Nation programme has achieved so far but we are also aware of the growing demand for accessible community food services up and down the country. It is important that we continue to find new ways we can support those facing food poverty now and in the future.

“Through Nourish the Nation, we are committed to ensuring the communities we serve have access to balanced, nutritional, and sustainable food sources. The donations from our Inspired to Cook range is just one of the ways we are working to further support the vital work of Comic Relief, while also inspiring our customers to explore new simple, tasty and nutritious meals to add to their weekly repertoire.”

Samir Patel, CEO of Comic Relief, said: “Right now, communities need our support more than ever as millions of people across the country continue to face the most difficult times in their lives due to rising costs of living. We are hugely grateful to Sainsbury’s for their support in helping us reach more people struggling with access to food at this crucial time, here in the UK and internationally.”

For more information on Sainsbury’s Nourish the Nation, visit Nourish the Nation | Sainsbury’s Recipes (sainsburys.co.uk)