A NEWPORT charity which was struggling to stay afloat last month due to the coronavirus pandemic has now delivered more than 200 food parcels across the city with the help of donations and community partnerships.
Feed Newport CIC revealed in March that it was unlikely to survive the lockdown period due to all of its activities being suspended by the government other than its foodbank.
After sharing pleas for help on social media, the charity received many donations, with a huge sum coming from Wales footballer Aaron Ramsey.
Now, after putting those donations to good use and combining it with the help of community partnerships, the charity has been able to support hundreds of residents and their families through the financial hardship of lockdown.
Tesco Extra in Spytty and Asda in Pill have joined forced with Feed Newport through the Community Champions scheme in association with FareShare.
As part of the scheme, which aims to tackle food waste, the supermarkets are donating surplus food stock to Feed Newport.
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Six volunteers at the charity, including founder Tariq Khan, are then delivering the parcels to those in need.
Staff at B&M in Maesglas have also made a significant cash donation.
"It's been an unbelievable transformation for us and we can't thank the donors enough," Mr Khan said. "A month ago we couldn't make 15 food parcels a week, and now we're making 15 a day."
In total, the charity has now delivered 223 food parcels since the project started last month, and are still going.
"We've received so many messages from people asking for help - people we've not heard from before," Mr Khan added. "What it has highlighted to me is the serious impact this crisis is having on every day families - not just people who were homeless or vulnerable before this."
Despite the fact that Feed Newport is on the up, they still need the financial backing to continue doing good work for vulnerable residents. To donate to Feed Newport, follow the link to their Crowdfunder here.
To find out more about events and anything Feed Newport related, visit their Facebook page at Feed Newport CIC here.
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