Beer and bread brands unite in the fight against Covid-19

Since the beginning of the pandemic, several companies have partnered to strengthen initiatives to combat the pandemic of the new coronavirus. One of the most recent was the union between Ambev and Bimbo Brasil, a bakery company, in the production of 540,000 slices of bread – made with barley malts used in the brewery's production – destined to vulnerable communities in the cities of São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Brasília and Gravataí, places where both companies have factories. The initiative that will take place from Monday, 22, will benefit about 680 entities of the food bank Mesa Brasil Sesc and the Central Único das Favelas (Cufa), which will allocate the breads to families of these communities. "Being able to use an essential ingredient of our beers, such as barley malt, to make bread shows how innovation and social impact go together. We need to do what we can to help and we will continue to look for new ways to collaborate," said Carla Crippa, Vice President of Society Relations at Ambev. The goal of the partnership is to reduce the economic effects caused by the pandemic and help people who are experiencing difficulties at the moment. "We believe that the union of efforts, especially of large companies, can bring many benefits to the population and contribute to the fight against Covid-19," says Alfonso Argudín Álvarez, managing director of Bimbo Brasil. Another beer company that teamed up with one of the bread to create an initiative to combat the new coronavirus was Heineken. In partnership with Wickbold, the company launched the "Fornada do Bem" project, which will donate two million slices of bread made with malt from the brewery to vulnerable families. The donations will take place from July, in the state of São Paulo, through the NGO Banco de Alimentos. Heineken donated about three tons of malt to the initiative. Wickbold had to adapt its production line to meet the demands of the project, which aims to manufacture 40 tons of the product. "I am optimistic to see the solidarity posture of so many companies and I feel that this moment has been of deep reflection to the understanding that there is a fundamental role of the private sector in building a less unequal society," Pedro Wickbold, the company's director, said in a statement.