SAN MIGUEL Corp. (SMC) will expand its ongoing food donation initiative in Metro Manila to include communities in the provinces of Cavite and Laguna, with total donations pegged at P11 million, it said on Wednesday.
SMC President and Chief Operating Officer Ramon S. Ang said in a statement that after delivering the first batch of food donations across local government units (LGUs) in Metro Manila, the company is looking to assist communities in the two provinces.
The donations are expected to benefit 19,500 families in the said areas and will consist of ready to eat products from SMC’s San Miguel Foods unit.
“While these stricter quarantine restrictions are necessary to curb the rising number of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) cases and reduce the strain on our health-care facilities and workers, for many people who earn a living on a daily basis, hunger is an issue. Putting food on the table is a constant worry, especially if you can’t work for days,” Mr. Ang said in the statement.
“Through these food donations, we hope to be able to help LGUs address the needs of vulnerable communities, and hopefully, help people to remain safe in their homes,” he added.
SMC initially donated 86,400 pieces of canned goods seen to benefit 17,280 families across Metro Manila LGUs, and 148,000 NutriBun packs to soup kitchens, hospital frontliners, and villages under granular lockdown in Pasig City.
“We will continue to work with the LGUs to assess the needs of vulnerable communities in their areas and look at what other assistance we can provide,” Mr. Ang said.
In 2020, SMC distributed P516 million worth of food donations under its COVID-19 response initiative. It also distributed hospital equipment, testing kits and machines, personal protective equipment, and other assistance to medical frontliners.
“The important thing is we stay at home, we keep safe so we can reduce the number of COVID-19 cases our medical frontliners have to take care of,” Mr. Ang said. — Revin Mikhael D. Ochave
