The Estonian Food Association and the Estonian Food Bank Toidupank are sending food to Ukraine in freight trucks. The first aid shipment with canned meat, cheese, sauces and baby food arrived on 7 March in Lviv, where the local Food Bank will deliver it.
“Ukraine has reached a situation where there is a shortage of the most basic and important food. We decided with the food producers that we would join forces and organise the aid shipment together, almost all of our members participated and sent their products. The first shipment of aid was driven across the border by Ukrainian Vitaly with his truck, unloaded the goods in Lviv and went on to war to protect his country,” said Sirje Potisepp, head of the Food Association.
“We are very pleased that the Estonian Food Association offered us the opportunity to cooperate. The Ukrainian Food Bank is currently almost entirely dependent on foreign aid, as food production has decreased in Ukraine. As of today, we also started collecting donations ourselves at three donation points in Tallinn, Tartu and Pärnu, so that we could collect food for sending to Ukraine and be able to help war refugees who arrived in Estonia,” said Piet Boerefijn, CEO of Toidupank, the Estonian Food Bank.
On 11 March the 4th truck of food will be sent from Estonia to Lviv in Ukraine. The Estonian Food Association and the Estonian Food Bank plan to send more food donated by Estonian food industries to Ukraine, with 1 or 2 trucks leaving every week. The shipment includes dry ingredients, canned food, water, cooking oil, baby food, cheese, sweets and other essentials.
