00:00So I think the total was £11,696 on our Just Giving page.
00:05We also had physical donations come into the studio.
00:09So these were local businesses that were collecting on behalf of the team.
00:14Kids were using their pocket money to get donations.
00:18And listeners, you know, maybe just going around their neighbourhood
00:21and putting that all together to replenish food banks across the county.
00:26And it's the pictures I saw you guys posting.
00:28People were coming into the office, weren't they?
00:30And you're posting photos.
00:32People are so generous.
00:33I mean, somebody gave £1,000, I believe.
00:35Yeah, so a lady from Canterbury called Eileen, she just appeared.
00:39She didn't just appear.
00:40She called in a couple of weeks ago, didn't she?
00:42She rung in and she said, I'd like to make a donation.
00:46She's slightly older and she was struggling with using the online technology.
00:50So I said, how much do you want to give?
00:53Because I thought, if she wants to give £10, £15, I'll give her the money.
00:55And if I ever meet you, you can shout me it back.
00:57And good job I didn't agree to that, really.
00:59Yeah.
00:59Because she turned up and she gave us £1,000, yeah.
01:02So, yeah, it's been amazing.
01:04The donation amount, the actual cash is now being converted into food.
01:08So we still don't know the total tonnage.
01:11The total tonnage yet.
01:12But last year was 9.21.
01:13And we're quietly confident.
01:17Yeah.
01:17Over ten times?
01:18Yeah.
01:19Maybe.
01:19Maybe.
01:20We think we raised over £5,000 more than last year.
01:26So we think that we will beat last year's total.
01:31But you gave us a point about the, it's amazing that people have been rocking up.
01:36The price of a can of beans from last year had gone up by like four or five pence.
01:41The same product we were buying last year has just gone up.
01:44Obviously, everybody's cost of living has gone up.
01:46Bills are going up through the roof for everybody.
01:48So the idea that we've been able to generate more money, we were always going to need more
01:52to even equal out last year's.
01:54And you've got food banks right across the county, this is going to be going to, dotted
01:58in all different corners.
02:00Tell us, you know, I mean, you do this every year, but what's the importance of continuing
02:03to do this year in the year?
02:04Until you, and we were lucky because we got a chance to actually physically go and see them
02:09being delivered, until you've walked into a food bank and you can see the shelves and
02:14how empty they are, until you hear, we had one guy came in to deliver who had used the
02:19food bank because he got ill, couldn't work anymore.
02:23Until you've kind of seen what a difference that makes and how these shelves get populated,
02:29it's really hard to kind of, I think, to really fully appreciate the difference it makes.
02:34Yeah.
02:35And I think, you know, in terms of how long will we do it, for as long as it needs, it
02:41is, you know, we see every year when people donate, they say, you know, it's so sad that
02:47this is needed in 2025.
02:49And that is absolutely the case.
02:51And I think what we've been trying to do this year as well is kind of break down people's
02:55misconceptions of who uses these resources.
03:00And also what was really valuable last year when we went as well was getting a better
03:05understanding of what, like, food or resources these food banks need.
03:11Because I think, you know, when you say tons of tins, a lot of people are like, oh, well,
03:15I'll bring in some beans.
03:17And it's like, well, you know, people deserve to eat more things than just a tin of beans.
03:22So it was fantastic last year to be able to talk to people and get a better understanding.
03:26And then we were able to take that knowledge to our partners, Tesco, Park Farm Ashford,
03:32who are doing all of the logistics side for us this year and say, you know, this is what
03:37we need.
03:39Can you do it for us?
03:40Yeah.
03:40So that, again, adds a level of expense, though, because if you're going in and buying beans
03:45versus going in and buying meatballs or meat or, you know, things like that, they are a
03:51lot more expensive.
03:52So, you know, if you look at a can of beans on the shelf, you're looking at somewhere in
03:55a region like 28, 29p, but if you then go and look at a tiny can of tuna, that's really
04:01a lot more money than the beans are.
04:03So, yeah, it's going to be an interesting one this year because obviously we'd love to
04:07be able to beat last year's total.
04:09That's not what we set out to do.
04:10What we set out to do was try and replenish as many food bank stocks as we could.
04:15And we'll find out next Friday what the total tonnage is.
04:19Yeah.
04:19Tell us a little bit about next Friday then.
04:21Is that when all the food is going to be in one place and it starts going up?
04:24No.
04:25Fans around?
04:25Okay, when's that going to happen?
04:26So that starts Tuesday.
04:27So it's Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday.
04:29There's 16 deliveries in total, three vans, all of the presenters.
04:34Because, like, you've got to imagine, so, like, what we did, we spoke about this, didn't
04:37we?
04:38Because last year was the biggest workout I think I've ever had in my life.
04:40Because if you imagine a tin of beans is 420 grams, yeah?
04:45So if you now start adding that up to what a ton looks like, you're talking random cans.
04:51You're talking about 1,400 tins.
04:53And it's heavy.
04:55And it's heavy.
04:56And last year we did it all ourselves, like, within KMFM.
05:01So it is a proper logistics challenge.
05:08Yeah, yeah, yeah.
05:09So we're so grateful for Tesco, part of Farm Ashford, being involved this year because we
05:16were like, well, you do this as kind of part of your job.
05:20Can you help us out?
05:21So we've got the three vans and the Tesco employees.
05:25We're then going to meet them at the locations so that we can help them.
05:30And then we can also meet the people at those food banks and talk to them and get an insight
05:36as to what that donation is going to do for them and their community.
05:41And then once all the food has gone out, obviously the great thing about Tesco, doing it all with
05:46Tesco, is they can give us receipts so we can totalise it up.
05:49So we will have the exact tonnage by Friday.
05:52And then we'll add it to all of the donations that have come in in person.
05:54And so, yeah, there's still quite a bit of work still to do.
05:57It's not done yet.
05:58But yeah, Friday morning's breakfast show, ten past eight, is when we're going to be
06:01handing an envelope.
06:03And hopefully it will have a big number on it.
06:05Yeah.
06:06Yeah.
06:06So everyone has to tune in.
06:07We come Friday.
06:08Yeah.
06:09Do you want to come in and join us at the beginning of the show?
06:11We'll have to get someone in to come in.
06:12Yeah, that'd be nice.
06:13We'll have to get somebody in.
06:13We'd love to see specifically games.
06:15Well, I could come along, yeah.
06:16Yeah, we'll have.
06:17Obviously, you know, it's early.
06:18Yeah, yeah.
06:19We'll come in with a camera, yeah.
06:21And croissants, please.
06:23Yes, maybe we could do that, yeah.
06:25You've promised it now on television, so.
06:27We'll get some warm ones.
06:28I said that.
06:29Click that.
06:30We'll get that to get back.
06:32Just before we go, the importance of this, local radio station, commercial radio station
06:36in Kent, you can do some amazing stuff for the listeners, can't you, like this?
06:40I think the thing is, like, you know, we're not getting too geeky about it.
06:43Commercial radio, radio in general, has been nationalised so far now.
06:49That, you know, we are the last standing commercial radio station in Kent.
06:53Yes, there are community stations, and they play a massively important role, and I will
06:58never be heard to be saying anything bad about them, but you do need a station with some
07:04weight to be able to pull things like this.
07:06And when we've got, you know, circa 200,000 people tuning in every week, when there's, you
07:11know, thousands of people tuning in on Alexa and online, to be able to do something like
07:17this, you do need a significant audience to be able to do it.
07:20We are so grateful to everybody that's donated, as Noom said earlier, from businesses to the
07:25children that have come in during their school holidays to the listener who we've never met
07:29before.
07:29Yeah.
07:30It wouldn't be possible without them, but this is what a community radio station, a
07:36county-wide radio station that genuinely cares about the community should be doing.
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