A priority project for the region is aimed at providing food aid to people in need
A new multifunctional distribution center of Foodbank Rus opened in the Novgorod region on January 12, supported by the Government of the Novgorod region and the Agency for Strategic Initiatives. Volunteers have been actively working there from the very first day. The new center was inspected by Andrey Nikitin, Governor of the Novgorod region, Svetlana Chupsheva, CEO of the Agency for Strategic Initiatives, and Leo, Metropolitan of Novgorod and Staraya Russa. The project is aimed at providing food aid to needy residents of the region.
Large federal chains, commodity producers, and local organizations have already been involved in providing aid. For instance, the regional branch cooperates with local agricultural producers: the peasant farm Starostin A.N. and the farmers’ cooperative Ilmen. Besides, the enterprise producing gluten-free flakes Stashevskoye BIO provides its products to help people in need; a cooperation agreement was signed between the fund and the private beekeeper Anton Zherebtsov.
Yulia Nazarova, president of Foodbank Rus: “It is important for us to provide regular aid to needy families in the region, which will require a larger amount of food and the active involvement of both local enterprises and federal partners.”
Regional branches of the fund are currently open in 16 regions of the country. The current barriers to scaling the model and creating a national network of food banks were discussed at a meeting of the State Council Committee on Social Policy, which was also held in the Government of the Novgorod region on January 12.
Yulia Nazarova claims that infrastructure, a well-developed distribution network of distribution points, as well as a trained professional team and volunteers are required for food banks to operate efficiently in the regions in the first place.
Artem Metelev, Chairman of the State Duma Committee on Youth Policy, head of the Dobro.ru platform, suggested to support abandoning of “incoming” VAT for commercial companies donating their goods to charity, which is another obstacle to the food bank development. Such a bill has already been drafted and is being discussed by members of State Duma committees.
Andrey Nikitin supported both suggestions as Head of the State Council Committee on Social Policy and Governor of the Novgorod region—one of the model regions where food banks have been launched and operating.