Moscow, 13 April 2020 – X5 Retail Group ("X5" or the "Company"), a leading Russian food retailer that operates the Pyaterochka, Perekrestok, and Karusel retail chains (LSE and MOEX ticker: "FIVE"), and Foodbank Rus decided to expand the regions eligible to receive food assistance from donations collected via the website for the online food drive, корзинадоброты.рф. Food hampers will now be delivered to elderly people residing not only in Moscow, but in the Moscow region and St Petersburg.
So far, 2,600 baskets have been packed as part of the programme. Together with 1,200 donated by X5 Retail Group, they have been delivered by volunteers to retirees living alone in Moscow and the Moscow region. St Petersburg residents will receive their first baskets as early as this week.
Senior citizens are a vulnerable group, especially in big cities, as they are more susceptible to complications from the coronavirus. The delivery of food baskets will enable them to stay at home and reduce the risk of exposure.
Donations can be made through the official Basket of Kindness website at https://корзинадоброты.рф. Anyone can participate in the online campaign by donating between RUB 150 and RUB 2,000. Different levels of donation correspond to different selections of products. Food is packed into hampers containing essential items, such as cereals, pasta, sunflower oil, canned goods, tea and long shelf life sweets.
To broaden the range of products available, Perekrestok engaged its partners, including Henkel (shampoos, shower gels, detergents and home care products), SPLAT (toothpaste and toothbrushes), Unilever (tea, soap, toothpaste and multi-purpose cleaning products), PepsiCo (soft drinks), BioFoodLab (plant-based milk and fruit bars), MAY Foods (tea), and Danone (milk, juices, milkshakes and fruit puree).
The baskets are delivered by the Medical Volunteers public movement (students and graduates of medical universities, and medical professionals), the All-Russia People’s Front, local social authorities, and Foodbank Rus. All volunteers wear protective masks and gloves.
The online charity initiative will run as long as the epidemiological situation remains unstable. Lists of senior citizens living alone and requiring help are compiled by Foodbank Rus and their partners among local authorities.
The Basket of Kindness was launched by X5 Retail Group and Foodbank Rus in 2015. X5 pioneered the food drive in Russia, creating and continuing to develop a local food aid infrastructure that enables customers to buy and donate food in-store to help feed people in need in their local communities. The online charity website корзинадоброты.рф has been active since November 2017. Over five years, Basket of Kindness has helped collect over 140,000 donations and distribute over 440 tonnes of food to more than 46,000 needy families.