ALPA to Deliver Basic Boxes to the Elderly in Arnhem Land

2500 Basics Boxes containing essential household and food items have been kindly donated to the elderly in Arnhem Land and Far North Queensland by supermarket chain Woolworths. The donation has been welcomed by The Arnhem Land Progress Aboriginal Corporation (ALPA) who will freight and distribute the packs to communities.

CEO Mr Alastair King says, the elderly are some of the most vulnerable people in our communities and are not often able to get to the store as often as they need to, so this is a welcome boost for them and our families.

“ALPA is paying for the freight of these basic boxes to be delivered and our community services teams are coordinating with health and aged care facilities to make sure they get to our elderly.”

The Basic Boxes contain essential items such as flour, toilet paper, soap, juice, long life milk and rice and are expected to be rolled out to communities this week.

Woolworths General Manager, Mr Chris Crammond, says the recent pressure on food and grocery chains caused an unprecedented surge in demand and has affected many Australians, including those in remote communities.

“We are pleased to be able to work with ALPA to find an interim solution which will see these boxes distributed to these communities immediately.”

ALPA CEO Alastair King says food security remains a top priority for our remote communities and we are in constant communication with suppliers, manufacturers, and other stakeholders.

“We appreciate that the biggest supermarket chain in the country is understanding how smaller retailers are doing it tough in this current health emergency.”

“Our communities are often invisible to the rest of Australia, so we really appreciate Woolworths reaching out and offering help.”

Mr Crammond added, “we will continue to work with Government and important stakeholders such as ALPA to underpin food security for these remote communities.”