Please help me to put pressure on Lidl to allow their store managers to give end of day produce to the Foodbanks.

My interview on BBC Radio Lancashire about food poverty here in the North West resulted in a phone-in this Tuesday. Marian, an 80yr old grandmother called in and told how she was feeding her working daughter and two grandchildren from her pension or they would starve.

The BBC gave her my number and yesterday I shopped at Lidl for some food for her. I was in the Burnley store and spoke to the lovely assistant manager there, Kirsty. She couldn’t give me anything FOC for Marian or even a discount but we did have a conversation about the store giving their end of day produce to me for the Foodbank. She told me to set it up with Head Office and I could collect on a daily basis.

I have just called Lidl Head Office and been given a resounding ‘NO’. The manager Ms Aiden Bell said it was policy and when I told her that I knew of two Lidl stores who were already giving end of day produce to Foodbanks she said she was unaware of this.

I asked if she could assure me that no action would be taken to stop these stores supplying Foodbanks and she said she could not give me that assurance. Help!

Please write on the
Lidl Facebook Page if you’re on Facebook saying

Lidl, please allow your store managers to give end of day produce to the Foodbanks. Your stores profit from the poor. Please don’t turn your back on them.

And if you’re on Twitter please Tweet them at LidlUK. With the hashtag #SupportFoodbanks

Anyone with any press connections or a direct line to Lidl MD Ronnie Gottschlich or the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby please use them to put the pressure on.

Thank you lovely people.