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A supermarket is hosting a winter collection in support of Risca Food Bank.

A donation station will be set up at the entrance of Risca Tesco between 9am and 6pm on Friday November 28, and between 9am and 3pm on Saturday November 29.

The event held in November each year across Tesco stores sees more than 100 crates of donations collected per store, according to Risca’s community lead, Sarah Warren.

Sarah said: “We’ve only just started this morning and have had loads of donations. I find Risca especially generous when it comes to this event.”

Sarah continued: “All of the food goes to Risca Food Bank, which is run out of the Salvation Army building on Risca High Street.

“Once all the trays are full, we load up our vans then take it over to the centre for them. We usually have over a ton’s worth of food to give and it’s really helpful this time of year when demand increases.”

To make donating even easier for customers, Sarah has set up ‘donation bags’ near the entrance, which can be bought for £2 or £3 and are full of various things the food bank is short on.

“They’re a real success and you can see here today that people are going for them. Our general donation box is always open too which we empty three times a week.”

Sarah added: “It’s a real community spirit and even our colleagues here at the store are donating throughout the day.”

She also explained how toys can be donated, with this year’s trolley-full going to Community Volunteer Wales, which is also based in Risca.

Ruth Jones, MP for Newport West and Islwyn, visited the Tesco Risca store for the launch of the winter food collection weekend, and said: “Of course we want to eliminate food banks altogether but it’s great to see the community pull together with such generosity.

“I’ve just bought one of the food donation bags myself and think that’s a wonderful idea for people rushing through the shop who still want to help out.

“Thank you to Sarah and to Tesco for putting on this event each year and making a real difference.”

Now in its 13th year, the Tesco Winter Food Collection is taking place in all Tesco stores until November 29.