Coronavirus: Companies donate food to migrant workers, underprivileged Singaporeans

Migrant workers at Westlite Toh Guan dormitory receiving bananas donated by Sumifru Singapore. PHOTO: SUMIFRU SINGAPORE

SINGAPORE - As the country is about to hit the one-month mark in the circuit breaker period, food companies are stepping up and donating food to migrant workers living in dormitories and other groups in need.

Dole Packaged Foods Worldwide has teamed up with non-profit organisations here, including The Food Bank Singapore and Food From The Heart, to deliver cartons of fruit bowls and canned fruits to nearly 300,000 underprivileged Singaporeans.

The products will go to more than 500 beneficiary centres and distribution points, said the company in a statement on Wednesday (April 29).

Dole will also be distributing care packages to front-line healthcare workers, logistics employees and partners, and those working at supermarkets and convenience stores across Asia.

Food chain Pizza Hut will be working with ItsRainingRaincoats, a social enterprise for migrant workers, to deliver 3,000 pizzas to workers in various dormitories on Friday to mark Labour Day.

Banana producer and distributor Sumifru Singapore has already delivered 10,000 individually wrapped bananas to migrant workers living in Westlite Toh Guan, Westlite Woodlands and Westlite Juniper dormitories on Wednesday and Thursday.

Behind this initiative was Sumifru sales manager Theresa Sensano, who persuaded the company to donate the bananas to migrant workers.

Sumifru's logistics provider, 83 Design & Print, chipped in by delivering hundreds of cartons of bananas to the dormitories for free.

Ms Angela Goh, group financial controller of Sumifru, said the company was inspired by the MaskForce initiative, whereby donors, non-governmental organisations and private-sector companies have contributed more than $3 million worth of donations to produce and deliver free face masks to migrant workers and domestic helpers.

Nurses from Alexandra Hospital receiving their Dole fruit cups. PHOTO: DOLE ASIA

The MaskForce initiative is spearheaded by Senior Minister of State for Culture, Community and Youth Sim Ann.

Ms Goh said that MaskForce organisers helped Sumifru in the distribution of the bananas at the dormitories through the Migrant Workers' Centre.

"We took inspiration from what MaskForce was doing and we thought this is something small that we can do for the migrant worker community to cheer them up," she added.

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