This week, Iliffe Mdia owned radion station, kmfm, concluded its 2024 Tonnes of Tins campaign, which proved to be a resounding success thanks to the generosity of listeners, supporters, and businesses across Kent.

On the breakfast show this morning, kmfm’s Rob Wills and Chelsea Little announced that the food drive collected over 9.21 tonnes of tins, dried food, and essential supplies, replenishing stocks at 16 food banks across Kent.

Over the past five weeks, donations poured into the kmfm studios, 13 drop-off locations across Kent, and through online contributions via their JustGiving page. When the page closed on Friday, August 9th, the total donations amounted to an incredible £7,348.

This collective effort surpassed last year’s achievements, both in monetary donations (£5,018) and the total weight of food collected (6.77 tonnes), despite the rising cost of food over the past year.

One key factor in this year's success was kmfm's partnership with local businesses across the county, who sponsored the campaign and served as drop-off points, making it easier for listeners to donate

John Finnigan, Director at Margate Independent Foodbank, shared the impact of these donations: “I would say that the number of people needing help has doubled. The community is suffering. This donation is going to make a big difference, and all I can do is say thank you.”

Sam Horak from Discount Tile and Bathroom Warehouse Gravesend, one of the drop-off points and sponsors, said, “Thank you to everyone who has donated tins. As a community, we’ve come together to help those in need during these uncertain times.”

Mike Harman from Bargain Warehouse Folkestone added, “We understand the struggle, and this is about giving back to the community. It’s been quite an eye-opener to see how much people have donated. This will make a massive difference.”

Rob Wills, Head of Broadcast at kmfm, expressed his gratitude: “We truly didn’t expect to beat last year’s total. When we reviewed last year’s receipts, we found that most of the food we bought this year had increased in price by around 12%.

Combined with the ongoing cost of living crisis, our goal was simply to collect and distribute as much as possible. To reveal this total today is absolutely jaw-dropping.

I want to thank everyone who donated, shared, delivered, and spread the word about this campaign. A special thanks to our partners across Kent—without them, this would not have been possible. We look forward to Tonnes of Tins 2025.”

Food Banks Supported in 2024 included: Canterbury Food Bank, Community Cupboard, Dartford Foodbank, FareShare Kent, Faversham Food Bank, Featherby School Foodbank, Gillingham Street Angels, Making a Difference to Maidstone, Margate Independent Foodbank, Medway Foodbank, Repton Community Trust, Salvation Army Hythe, Salvation Army Ramsgate, Shepway Foodbank and Shepway/Park Wood Community Larder.

Campaign Partners included: Specsavers Stores in Medway, The Mall, Maidstone Hendy Group Peugeot & Vauxhall, Tonbridge Dumpton Park Nissan, Broadstairs Discount Tile and Bathroom Warehouse Gravesend, Garden X Whitstable, RCH Care Homes Park View Ashford and Bargain Warehouse Folkestone.