A HIGHBRIDGE foodbank has thanked shoppers after they donated more than 1.7 tonnes food to families in need.

Tesco on Ben Travers Way held their annual food collection from December 2 to December 5 as part of their ongoing effort to encourage customers to donate long life food to charity.

Customers dug into their shopping baskets and donated 1712.82kg of food to the foodbank, which will allow them to provide more three day emergency parcels to families in crisis.

Foodbank chairman, Beverley Milner Simonds, said: "This was our largest ever collection at the local Tesco store and thank you to the many hundreds of customers who donated food to help local families in crisis this winter.

"The demand for foodbank support has not diminished and this food will be rapidly turned around and distributed.

"We want to thank Catherine, the Tesco Community Champion and our volunteers.

"Together they spent many hours collecting and packing up the food before our volunteer drivers collected it and took it back to our storage facility at the Methodist Church."

Following the food collection, Tesco are set to 'top up' the customer's donations by 20 per cent which will help the foodbank feed more people in need in the area.

The foodbank will report back to The Trussell Trust, who manage the foodbank, the total weight collected and they redistribute the top-up cash to local foodbank to purchase items of food and day-to-day running costs.

They provide three day emergency food parcels to families who are referred through frontline professional agencies like the Citizen's Advice Bureau, MacMillan Nurses and children centres.

Beverley said the donations are a 'great support' to families in need.

"The Highbridge & Burham Foodbank want to extend a big thank you to the shoppers at the Tesco Store in Burnham-on-Sea who donated an incredible 1712.82kg of food, " Beverley said.

"By donating food you can help support local people in crisis in a simple practical way.

"The people visiting are welcomed, listened to and signposted to other services that are able to provide further support, helping to break the cycle of poverty."

Despite the collection, the foodbank is still looking for donations of tinned meat, fish, vegetables and fruit as well as pasta sauces, instant coffee, UHT or powdered milk and long life fruit juice.

You can donate by popping into the foodbank at Highbridge Hope Baptist Church on Thursday between 9.30am and 12.30pm, St John's Church in Highbridge on Wednesday's between 10am and 11.30am or at the Methodist Church on College Street in Burnham-on-Sea on Tuesday or Saturday mornings between 10am and noon.

For more information visit highbridgearea.foodbank.org.uk