New research from Sainsbury’s shows food plays a key role in life’s most memorable moments, but many facing food poverty associate those memories with hardship
This summer, around 7.3 million1 people may struggle with food poverty, with many feeling stressed about being unable to provide meals or memory-making activities for their families
To help change this, every penny* from Sainsbury’s own-label pasta sales between 9th July and 1st August will be donated to Comic Relief to help provide 1 million meals to families who need them the most
This follows a donation from the retailer of £1.8m to support over 200 holiday clubs across the UK, helping to create over 100,000 holiday club places this summer and beyond
21st July: Sainsbury’s is taking a fresh approach to tackling school holiday hunger by funding both meals and activities for children to help create memorable experiences, as new research shows that food is integral to our memories. New research commissioned by Sainsbury’s found that 72% of Brits say that food is an important part of their memories, with moments of connection with family and friends (43%) and positive memories of childhood (37%) being the ones we most closely associate with food.
Almost two thirds (64%) of Brits say that they associate food with positive moments and memories - and this connection is even stronger in the summer months, with the over a third reporting that the season evokes strong food memories (42%) as picnics, barbeques and summer sharing plates become a regular occurrence with improved weather.
But for the estimated 7.3 million people across the UK who will face food poverty this summer the reality is very different. Many individuals' experiencing food poverty report feeling “stressed”2 about providing meals for their families over the summer and struggling to create fun memories against cost-of-living pressures.
To make sure that families can make more joyful memories and have access to the food they need to thrive, Sainsbury’s and Comic Relief have teamed up to fund over 100,000 holiday club places in the UK this summer, through a donation from the retailer of £1.8m, providing children with free, healthy meals and access to memory-making activities such as cooking, music lessons and sports.
And to supercharge its fundraising efforts over the difficult summer months and beyond, every penny* of Sainsbury’s own-label pasta sold between the 9th of July to the 1st of August will be donated to Comic Relief to provide 1 million meals to families experiencing food poverty during school holidays.
With over 850,000 packs of pasta sold on average each week at Sainsbury’s, this affordable and filling family favourite is a staple in households across the country and will help to drive fundraising efforts to support communities during a time when help matters most.
Ruth Cranston, Director of Sustainability at Sainsbury’s commented: “Summer is a time where food shapes joyful memories for many people across the UK, but with food poverty remaining one of the most urgent challenges of our time, the reality for millions of families this summer will be very different.
We’re supporting incredible organisations through our Nourish the Nation programme to alleviate food poverty and help everyone access quality, nutritious food. This includes our support for holiday clubs over the summer as well as funding for 15 new school-based food clubs around the UK that will provide year-round support to families facing food poverty.
But there’s more to be done, so we’re delighted that our customers can play their part this summer by purchasing their favourite Sainsbury’s own-label pasta, helping us to fund 1 million meals and bringing us closer to a future where everyone has access to the joy of good food, every mealtime.”
While some support for children and families facing food poverty over the holidays is provided through Government funded food and activity clubs, it can be limited covering only part of the summer holidays, lacking provision in Scotland and Wales, and unavailable in Northern Ireland. It’s also estimated that 900,000 children experiencing food poverty in England will be ineligible for support that they need3. Our donation will support people across the UK who are unable to access this support.
A parent whose child attended a holiday club, funded by Sainsbury’s and Comic Relief said:
“Although I work, I don’t have extra money once the bills are paid. I was really down and felt awful that I couldn’t afford to give my daughter fun times over the holidays. The holiday club was amazing, it picked me up and made me feel better as, although I am skint, my daughter still had some amazing times during the holidays.
“I can’t thank the club enough for saving our summer holidays. My daughter benefited loads as she learned some independence, social skills, and made new friends all whilst having fun.”
Samir Patel, Chief Executive of Comic Relief said: “The number of children at risk of going hungry over the summer holidays is deeply concerning. Many parents will find it incredibly difficult, or even impossible, to find the extra money to provide more food at home with household finances already stretched to breaking point.
Holiday clubs are a vital lifeline for families who are struggling. We are proud to be working with our partner, Sainsbury’s, to provide thousands more holiday club places for those who need it most this summer and even more for future school holidays. The fantastic organisations we fund across the UK not only provide hot nutritious meals, but a safe place for children to have fun and enjoy their time off school, as every child should."
Sainsbury’s customers can help to fund vital initiatives that support families in future school holidays by purchasing own-label Sainsbury’s pasta until 1st August, with every penny* from the sales donated to Comic Relief to fund initiatives for next summer, or by making a monetary donation in store, online or via Nectar.
ENDS
NOTES TO EDITORS
About Sainsbury’s
Offering delicious great quality food at competitive prices has been at the heart of what we do since John James and Mary Ann Sainsbury opened our first store in 1869. Today, inspiring and delighting our customers with tasty food remains our priority and our purpose is clear – we make good food joyful, accessible and affordable for everyone, every day.
Our focus on great value food and convenient shopping, whether in-store or online is supported by our brands – Argos, Nectar, Tu Clothing, Habitat, Sainsbury’s Bank and Smart Charge. Sainsbury’s has almost 600 supermarkets and over 800 convenience stores. Argos is a leading digital retailer and is the third most visited retail website in the UK, with over 70 per cent of its sales starting online. Argos is conveniently available for customers to collect from hundreds of Sainsbury’s stores. Digital and technology enables us to adapt as customers shop differently and our profitable, fast-growing online channels offer customers quick and convenient delivery and collection capability.
About Comic Relief
Comic Relief is a UK charity that uses the power of entertainment and popular culture to work towards a vision of a just world free from poverty. We raise money to support organisations that are closest to the communities who can make change happen. We support work that will tackle the impact of poverty, injustice, conflict, and climate change in the UK and around the world.
Since launching in 1985, we have raised over £1.6 billion thanks to the huge generosity and kindness of the public and our partners. For more information on our work, visit www.comicrelief.com or follow @comicrelief on X (formerly Twitter), Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and TikTok for the latest content and news.
Comic Relief is the operating name of Charity Projects, registered charity in England & Wales (326568) and Scotland (SC039730).
Footnotes
1 Food Foundation Food Insecurity survey, February 2025
2 Based on feedback from individuals using services funded by Sainsbury’s and Comic Relief
3 Child Poverty Action Group analysis of Department of Education FSM data, June 2024
Research
The research was conducted by Censuswide, among a sample of 2,000 UK nationally representative respondents. The data was collected between 07.07.2025 - 09.07.2025. Censuswide abides by and employs members of the Market Research Society and follows the MRS code of conduct and ESOMAR principles. Censuswide is also a member of the British Polling Council.
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