The Great Food Drive is back: two days of solidarity for 230,000 Catalans

BarcelonaExcept for the Gran Recapte (Great Food Drive) by the Banc dels Aliments (Food Bank), which aims to collect donations at various municipal markets and supermarkets across the country between Friday and Saturday. Symbolically, this solidarity event began Friday morning at the Mercat del Ninot in Barcelona, ​​in an event that kicks off a campaign that this year will have 15,800 volunteers spread across 2,000 donation points. The hybrid format remains, with both in-person collection of products and monetary donations earmarked for the purchase and subsequent distribution of food. Besides in-person donations at supermarkets, donations can also be made... through the Gran Recapte website until November 23.

For the seventeenth consecutive year, the Gran Recapte (Great Food Drive) aims to provide extra support to the 230,000 people who receive monthly assistance from the Food Bank and has a goal of raising €6.1 million. Recommended food donations include milk, oil, rice, pasta, legumes, and canned fish, meat, and baby food. However, at the 2,000 collection points located throughout Catalan markets and supermarkets, "any contribution is welcome," says Elisabet Viladomiu, director of the Barcelona Food Bank. This year's slogan, "We give it our all," encourages the public to participate because "it is society that makes the Gran Recapte possible," Viladomiu adds.

The president of the Barcelona Food Bank, Lluís Fatjó-Vilas, emphasized that the campaign's objective, in addition to collecting food, is to "raise awareness that a significant portion of the population is struggling and living in poverty." Therefore, monetary donations can also be made directly at supermarket checkouts, allowing the organization to purchase the most needed food items based on the needs of the beneficiaries.

For those interested in helping with the collection, but who cannot go to the designated collection points this weekend, the Gran Recapte website will accept donations until November 23, with the added feature of being able to make a virtual purchase from home.

The great solidarity push

The Gran Recapte is one of the most important solidarity drives in the region, both in terms of donors and volunteers. This year, the campaign has almost 16,000 volunteers throughout Catalonia – 10,000 in Barcelona, ​​around 2,800 in Tarragona, 1,800 in Girona, and 1,100 in Lleida – who, wearing their blue vests, will try to appeal to people's generosity to achieve maximum support.

Aurora is the coordinator of the Sant Josep Oriol Solidarity Food Distribution (DISA) and also a volunteer at the Gran Recapte food drive in the Ninot Market. Her work at DISA allows her to interact with vulnerable people every day, and she says she sees "how they are and how they feel." "They need food, but also someone to listen to them," says Aurora, who points out that "product prices have risen a lot," making it difficult for everyone to enjoy a healthy diet. "Some people tell us they have nothing in their refrigerator, which is why they are so grateful for the help. The Gran Recapte is crucial for providing that boost of solidarity," she affirms.

Twenty-four percent of the Catalan population is at risk of social exclusion, and this figure rises with each generation. Many people in our country struggle to afford food, leading to nutritional deficiencies and, consequently, malnutrition. That's why the Food Bank and the Gran Recapte (Great Food Drive) "are so essential," emphasizes Rafael Ribó i Massó, a collaborator with the Food Bank and former Catalan Ombudsman. "Each year, the campaign is a new opportunity to raise public awareness and remind everyone that we are in dire need," he adds.

The Secretary of Social Affairs and Inclusion, Carolina Homar, has emphasized the importance of promoting public policies to raise awareness and combat poverty and waste, and It also depends on the quality of the food offered. The Food Bank has a network of 5,000 collaborating entities throughout the region, and Homar adds that "the Great Food Drive allows us, with a small gesture, to unleash a solidarity network that is fundamental to fighting poverty in Catalonia."

The ARA is also participating in this Great Food Drive with a virtual purchase. The food from Super Solidarity section of the newspaper AHORA These donations will be added to all those collected during the Great Food Drive and distributed later. Come in, choose one or more food items, and help fill the pantry!