According to the data of the Estonian Food Bank, 310,100 people lived in relative poverty and 18,000 people in absolute poverty in Estonia last year, while the Food Bank has distributed over 3,700 tons of food to those in need this year.
Food banks have distributed food aid to an average of 20,000 people in Estonia every week this year, 8,000 of whom are children, the Estonian Food Bank said on Tuesday. Altogether 3,720 tons of food have been distributed to those in need this year alone.
According to Katrin Bats, the head of responsible business at the retail chain Rimi, this year is different from the previous ones because the number of people needing help has increased against the background of rising prices.
“Families with children depend to a large extent on salvaged food, which is left over in the stores at the end of the day. All parties are extremely grateful for this, but this selection is often unpredictable,” Piet Boerefijn, the Dutch founder of the Estonian Food Bank, said.
Rimi stores have food donation baskets
“If people make conscious donations to families with children, it will definitely make those families’ meals much more diverse ahead of the upcoming holidays. All healthy foods and dry goods are welcome, but of course all little people are happy about sweets.”
All Rimi stores have special donation baskets where people can bring food. A donation can also be made in the Rimi online store by adding a donation in the amount of €3, €5 or €10 to the shopping cart.
This can be done all year round, because there are people in need at any time of the year. Rimi collects the donated amount and once a month transfers it to the Food Bank, which delivers food aid to every corner of Estonia. This is the fourth year of cooperation between the Estonian Food Bank and Rimi.
