Many people in Geneva and Vaud took part in the “Samedi du partage” solidarity operation. A total of 200 tonnes of essential goods were collected.
At a time when the public, food banks and food redistribution associations are having to cope with the impact of two successive crises, including a rise in the price of staple foods, the organisers feared that the harvest would be a mixed bag. In view of the situation, Samedi du partage estimates the tonnage collected as positive.
Despite difficulties in obtaining supplies and a fall in purchasing power, which could have led to a significant drop in solidarity, the people of Lake Geneva showed great generosity towards those in precarious situations. A total of 45 tonnes was collected in Lausanne and, for the first time, in the Chablais region, as well as over 155 tonnes in the canton of Geneva. The organisers would like to congratulate and thank store customers for their generosity.
The entire harvest is donated to the food banks in the various regions (CA-RL, Fondation Partage and Tables du Rhône), which will redistribute the goods to associations and social services on an equitable basis according to the number of beneficiaries.
The two Samedi du partage associations would like to extend their heartfelt thanks to the 1,500 or so volunteers (associations, companies, individuals, service clubs, schoolchildren), an essential link in this chain of solidarity, who took part in this operation in supermarkets on Friday 10 and Saturday 11 June.
Their sincere thanks also go to the retailers who welcomed the groups of volunteers and took care of the event’s logistics.
For those who would still like to take part in the operation in Geneva, it is still possible to collect donations online until 24 June (https://samedidupartage.ch/e-recolte/).
The next edition of Samedi du partage will take place on 25 and 26 November.
Photo credits: David Wagnières
