MACS A MILLION
McDonald’s offers 1 MILLION free meals for families as Marcus Rashford calls for school kids to be fed over half-term
MCDONALD'S has offered 1 MILLION free meals for families - as Marcus Rashford calls for school kids to be fed over half-term.
The fast food giant has joined the Manchester United and England ace's campaign to feed families in need - as restaurants up and down Britain pledge food.
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It comes as the .
As part of the new deal, McDonald's will provide funding to FareShare - recently visited by Rashford - to urgently redistribute food to families who need it most.
Fareshare is a charity aimed at relieving food poverty across the UK which the star striker has already raised £20million for.
The announcement comes days after Rashford said kids were made to feel like they "don't matter" - after he lost his bid to get the nation's most vulnerable youngsters free school meals this winter.
MPs rejected a motion to extend free school meals over the school holidays until Easter 2021 by 322 votes to 261, majority 61.
But Rashford pleaded with the government to resume talks on the issue on Wednesday night, adding: "A significant number of children are going to bed tonight not only hungry but feeling like they do not matter."
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The star striker earlier shared a list of restaurants and cafes offering free meals to schools - and said he was "blown away" by the small businesses offering their help.
Children's meal champion Rashford began tweeting the details of more than 20 locations across Britain last night - adding a further 20 this afternoon.
They include Bolton, Liverpool, Wirral, Sheffield, Wigan, Bristol and Devon, Whitley Bay, Staffordshire, Nottingham, Stevenage, Teesdale , Anglesey, Whitehaven, Watford and County Durham.
McDonalds announced the partnership in a tweet, writing: "We are proud to announce a partnership with @FareShareUK to provide 1 million meals for families in need.
"Our funding will enable the urgent redistribution of meals across the next couple of weeks to those in greatest need."
Speaking on the new deal with FareShare, Paul Pomroy, CEO of McDonald's for UK & Ireland, said: “As a business we are committed to supporting and serving the communities in which we operate.
"In these challenging times, we know it’s more important than ever to support those most in need."
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Lindsay Boswell, FareShare CEO added: "McDonalds is showing real leadership in supporting the most vulnerable in society to get access to healthy food at this critical time.
"The funding will enable the equivalent of 1 million meals to be redistributed to our charity network very swiftly, and we are very grateful for their urgent support."
McDonald's has already donated over 400 tonnes of food and 100,000 litres of milk through FareShare and other organisations.
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