Aldi has given out nearly 50,000 meals to local communities across West Dunbartonshire as part of a nationwide food donations initiative.

The budget supermarket - which has stores in Clydebank and Alexandria - has donated 46,133 meals to the local community since it launched its Neighbourly scheme in 2019.

As part of the Neighbourly project, all of the supermarket’s stores in West Dunbartonshire are partnered with foodbanks, charities and community groups, which receive surplus food year-round.

This is replicated UK-wide and the supermarket recently celebrated donating its 30 million meals to good causes since it started four years ago.

Liz Fox, corporate responsibility director at Aldi UK, said: “Donating 46,133 meals in West Dunbartonshire through our partnership with Neighbourly is an amazing achievement, with the initiative now more vital than ever for local community groups and charities who face soaring demand.

“We’re committed to doing all that we can to support people in the communities where we trade, and through our partnership with Neighbourly we have helped to make food more accessible for those in West Dunbartonshire.”

More than 4,000 good causes across the country have now benefitted from the scheme, including soup kitchens and children’s breakfast clubs.

The milestone follows Aldi's donation of £250,000 to Neighbourly to launch its Emergency Winter Foodbank Fund to further support increased demand during the cold months.

Steve Butterworth, CEO of Neighbourly, added: “We’ve worked with Aldi for several years to help them further their support for those in need. The cost-of-living crisis is impacting communities in West Dunbartonshire and we’ve seen the demand on foodbanks and local causes increase drastically since our partnership began.

“The support of the public and businesses like Aldi makes a huge difference. We know the donations have helped thousands of charities, community groups and families in need.”