In Leadership & Public Policy, Sustainability & Future Generations•18 December 2020•2 Minutes

The Food for London Now appeal has raised £10m and delivered 20m meals: Thank You London

Dear London,

Today our Food for London Now appeal surpassed its target of raising £10 million to feed London’s poorest.

Nine months ago, when the UK first entered a historic lockdown to tackle a novel threat, we set ourselves a challenge. The situation was grave: the economy was flatlining, community organisations saw their funding slashed and many could not leave their homes or access essentials.

Ours is a commuter paper and we felt the pain of the pandemic almost as acutely as many others. So we resolved to do what we could to help Londoners who needed it at this difficult time; and give people the tools to help each other.

We have worked with The Felix Project, the country’s largest food redistribution charity, to supply hospitals, schools, and frontline charities such as With Compassion.

Through the generosity of readers, we were able to turbocharge the operations of The Felix Project: in February it distributed 20,000 meals per day; now it does 100,000 per day.

Our journalists have travelled the length and breadth of the city, shining a light on the people and organisations doing their bit to help local communities.

We have also told the stories of those who have suffered the most from Covid-19. As I wrote in March, the Evening Standard is Britain’s foremost campaigning newspaper and website.

Thank You London: Food for London Now

We don’t only report on the facts; we try to make a difference. In the spirit of that, this victory is also the first step towards opening a social kitchen for London, as a  lasting commitment to tackling hunger in our capital.

But for now, this letter is for all those who worked on the campaign, for all the volunteers who gave their time to help others  and for all the supporters who donated their resources.

There is only one thing left to say: thank you, London.

Evgeny Lebedev

Evening Standard proprietor

Originally Published by The Standard

VIEW ARTICLE

Privacy Preference Center

Privacy Preferences