October 13, 2023.- The subdelegate of the Government, Miguel Latorre, has attended the distribution warehouse of the Red Cross of Soria, where he has received the president, José Eduardo Martínez Pedroso to the reception of the shipment corresponding to the second phase of the "Program 2023 of food aid to the most disadvantaged people" of the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, calculated for Soria in 93,402.72 kilograms/liters of food valued at 168,397.97 euros that will be distributed free of 2,893 beneficiaries through the Spanish Federation of Food organizations.
The 2023 Program has been developed in two phases of supply. The distribution partner organisations, the Spanish Red Cross and the Spanish Federation of Food Banks (FESBAL), designated by the EAGGF, distribute the food they provide to people, whose economic or family situation of need prevents them from acquiring food on a regular basis. The first food reception this year took place in May, estimated for Soria at 32,705.72 kilograms/litre of food, valued at 54,033.04 euros, which was distributed among 2,979 beneficiaries through the partner organizations.
Miguel Latorre has pointed out that “these are foods of a basic character, varied, nutritious, little perishable, easy to transport and storage”. “Within the framework of Programme 2023, the EAGGF has purchased, through a public tender procedure, basic, varied, nutritious, low-perishable, easily transportable and easily stored food. The “food basket” includes rice, cooked chickpeas, cooked beans, canned tuna, spaghetti and noodle type alimentary paste, fried tomato, canned pork lean meat, canned vegetable macaque, canned vegetable oil sardine, light syrup canned fruit, biscuits, soluble cocoa, childish fruit and chicken tarritos.” The subdelegate stressed that this food basket “allows disadvantaged people to easily prepare a full meal for one person or for a family with several members, including babies.”
In the Autonomous Community of Castilla y León, 1,286,296.40 kg of food valued at 2,321,198.33 euros will be distributed free of charge in the second phase.
Program 2023
The purchase of the food has been carried out by the EAGGF through a public tender process worth 88,571,420 million euros (this figure corresponds to the budget of 2023, VAT not included). The program is funded this year in its entirety by the OBJECTIVE-EU recovery and resilience fund, which has been used to increase support for the European Fund for the Most Disadvantaged People (FEAD), in order to address the situation of those who have been affected socially and economically by the COVID-19 crisis.
The year 2023 is the last year in which the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food participates in the implementation of the plans of the food aid program for the most disadvantaged people of the European Union, in which it participates since 1987 without interruption.
From 2024, the Ministry of Labor and Social Economy, and the Ministry of Social Rights and Agenda 2030, will be the competent ministries to articulate this model of aid in Spain.
On the website of the Spanish Agrarian Guarantee Fund you can consult all the details related to the 2023 Program: