Right now, Christmas markets will be packing up for another year and stallholders will be counting the takings of the festive period. However, many will not simply be totalling up the proceedings of their tenancies but thinking back upon the charitable deeds conducted over the past month, with those in Belfast feeling particularly fulfilled after the season of goodwill.
Stallholders at the Belfast City Hall Christmas Market used December to aid those less fortunate than themselves by donating leftover food to the homeless at the end of the day’s trading. They were encouraged to engage with local charity SOS NI by local food blogger Vivek Tohani, who sprang into action upon hearing all leftovers were thrown in the bin rather than being donated to charitable organisations.
Mr Tohani explained that he believes throwing out edible leftovers is “crazy” when the number of people going hungry over the holidays is so high.
He continued; “I along with a few other blogging friends did want to help over the Christmas period, but I thought why not help the needy and less fortunate, between today and when the market closes on the 21st of December.”
After approaching the local authority for permission to initiate the charity food drive, Mr Tohani arranged for SOS NI representatives to collect the leftovers at the end of the day.
Founded by Joe Hyland in 2007, the charity already has an existing food drive in place whereby local retailers can donate expiring items, but the Christmas market scheme allowed for increased volumes at the coldest time of the year.
Unfortunately, increased legislation has prevented many retailers from engaging in charitable actions of this kind in the past few years, as was demonstrated by some stallholders’ reluctance to donate when approached by Mr Tohani. This, he believes, is due to the fact that health and safety laws can place blame upon retailers should a person receiving leftovers from the charity become ill as a result.
Therefore, Mr Hyland is now calling for a so-called “Good Samaritan” law to come into effect which would protect retailers from legal action when donating food. As well as encouraging more businesses to donate leftovers to charity, he claims, this could lessen the amount of waste generated by the food and drink industry each year which, as he points out, currently stands at 3.9 million tonnes.
Should a law of this kind come into effect, it could have a massively positive impact upon the UK. With more families than ever before relying on food banks and social supermarkets to make ends meet, an increase in donations would ease the strain upon charities such as SOS NI and allow them to help more people during the festive season.
Christmas is a time for mass consumerism but also, as demonstrated in Belfast, a time for charity and giving. Hopefully, Mr Hyland’s campaign will prove successful and let more people have a merry Christmas in 2015.
Did your local Christmas market engage in a charity campaign of this type and, if so, do you believe the Good Samaritan law would allow them to continue this good work each year?
