Call to join Gran Recapte food drive on November 22 and 23 due to 20% drop in donations

Catalonia's food bank has launched its latest campaign ahead of the annual Gran Recapte food drive on November 22 and 23, highlighting a significant drop of 15% to 20% in food donations compared to last year.

At the event's announcement, with the motto 'Eat Your Excuses,' organizers called for 16,000 volunteers to participate, ensuring coverage of the 2,200 collection points across Catalonia.

Their goal is to surpass last year's €5.8 million in donations and extend food distribution by an additional month. "We hope to exceed that target," said Elisabet Viladomiu, director of Barcelona's Banc dels Aliments food bank, adding that they are "working hard towards this goal."

As in previous years, the Gran Recapte will operate in two formats: the traditional in-person collection at supermarkets, and online financial donations through the Banc dels Aliments website and Bizum, Spain's fast payment service.

While the food drive will be held on Friday, November 22, and Saturday, November 23, financial donations will remain open until December 5. These funds will enable Banc dels Aliments to purchase food in the future.

Food donations will begin to be sorted on November 23 and distributed starting on November 25.

Banc dels Aliments has explained that, due to rising food prices and the end of the Fund for European Aid to the Most Deprived from the European Union, the amount of food distributed this year has decreased by 15% to 20% compared to last year.