‘Poppy Box’ potato sales target smashed: £14k windfall for armed forces community

by | Feb 1, 2016 | News

We are proud to announce that we have smashed our annual Poppy Appeal fundraising target – donating more than £14,000 to The Royal British Legion from sales of our signature Mint salad potatoes.

Together with Suffolk-based potato growers Three Musketeers Ltd, we pledged to give the armed forces community charity 50p from every box sold throughout the three-week appeal, and set an original target to raise £10,000.

When the sales receipts from the special ‘Poppy Boxes’ of potatoes were tallied, we had exceeded that goal by almost 50 percent.

“This charity fundraising promotion has been far more successful than expected,” said a thrilled Tim O’Malley – our Group Managing Director.

“We would have been delighted to have raised £10,000. However, the ‘Poppy Boxes’ were so well received by new and existing customers that we managed to raise a huge £14,443.

‘The British Legion are thrilled and so are we. A big thanks from myself and Edward Blanchard from Three Musketeers Ltd goes out to all the customers and staff involved – your generosity is much appreciated!”

Tim and Edward were inspired to launch the fundraising initiative after making separate visits to the Western Front battlefields of the Great War.

“We were both moved by these experiences and wanted to do something to help raise funds for The Royal British Legion,” recalls Tim. “The charity relies on public generosity so it can continue to provide lifelong support for the armed forces community – serving men, women, veterans and their families.

‘We hit on the idea of replacing the iconic Mint leaf on our popular Mint salad potatoes packaging with a poppy, and donating money from every ‘Poppy Box’ sale to the appeal. We’re proud to have created a unique opportunity for buyers to support the Poppy Appeal while also backing British farming.”

The ‘Poppy Boxes’ were sold between 21 October and 11 November 2015 in leading wholesale and food-service companies throughout the country.

Mark Poynton, Chef and Owner of the Michelin-starred Alimentum restaurant in Cambridge, was the first person to champion the ‘Poppy Box’ project on behalf of the restaurateur community.

Money raised through the Poppy Appeal goes directly to the charity’s welfare work, providing through-life care to anyone who currently serves in the British Armed Forces, who has previously served, and their families.

PHOTO CAPTION: From left to right: Tim O’Malley (Nationwide), Ed Blanchard (Three Musketeers), Lyn Hatch (The Royal British Legion) and Mark Poynton (Alimentum).

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