Saturday, November 15, 29th National Food Drive Day
National Food Drive Day returns on Saturday, November 15th, under the High Patronage of the President of the Republic. This initiative, promoted by the ETS Food Bank Foundation to raise awareness of poverty, will allow citizens to purchase non-perishable foods to donate to those in need, supported by local partner organizations affiliated with the 21 regional Food Bank branches. With the increase in requests for assistance, the Food Drive represents a concrete sign of solidarity, increasingly sought after by those living in difficult situations.
All donated food will then be distributed to over 7,600 local partner organizations affiliated with the Food Bank (soup kitchens, family homes, communities for minors, listening centers, street units, etc.) that serve over 1,755,000 people in need.
In nearly 12,000 supermarkets across Italy, over 155,000 Food Bank volunteers, recognizable by their orange vests, will encourage people to purchase shelf-stable products such as oil, canned vegetables and legumes, tomato preserves and ready-made sauces, canned tuna and meat, baby food, and rice.
| "The Food Drive is an initiative we've been proposing for almost thirty years as an opportunity to educate everyone about sharing and responsibility," says Marco Piuri, president of the ETS Food Bank Foundation. "Falling into poverty is a risk that can affect each of us: a condition that can arise in moments of fragility. This is why we are all called to take responsibility for it, with simple but meaningful gestures. The Food Drive is a concrete response, a sign that restores hope and dignity." The testimonies collected each year confirm this: "I'm retired, I can't afford much... but I want to donate something too," said an elderly woman, handing the volunteers a box of lentils. Or again, "I don't have much, but I know what it's like to have nothing. This packet of biscuits is for those worse off than me," said a former prisoner, offering his contribution. "It's in these small gestures," Piuri concludes, "that we recognize the strength of a people capable of |
| sharing: the Collection is truly a sign that makes a difference”. In Friuli Venezia Giulia and Eastern Veneto, food will be distributed to 288 Territorial Partner Organizations that assist approximately 39 thousand people in difficulty. “It is a simple and concrete gesture, always the same but which is renewed every year in its educational proposal – says Paolo Olivo, president of BancoAlimentaredelFriuliVeneziaGiuliaODV. The Pope, in his message for the IX World Day of the Poor on Sunday 16 November, warns us of the danger of getting used to and resigning ourselves in the face of the succession of new waves of impoverishment and calls us to create new signs of hope that testify to charity. This is why today, more than ever, we invite everyone to the gesture of the Food Collection.” From 15 November to 1 December it will also be possible to donate groceries online on some dedicated platforms: to find out about the various ways to purchase products and the stores participating in the initiative, you can consult the website www.bancoalimentare.it. The Food Drive, an initiative by the ETS Food Bank Foundation to support the 2025 World Day of the Poor, proclaimed by Pope Leo XIV, has received the patronage and support of the National Committee for the Celebration of the Eighth Centenary of the Death of Saint Francis of Assisi. It is made possible through collaboration with the Italian National Federation of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul (ODV), the Compagnia delle Opere – Opere Sociali ETS, the Army, the Air Force, the National Alpine Association, the National Bersaglieri Association, Lions International Multidistrict 108 Italy, and the European Food Banks Federation. |
İl Friuli
