Media Call: Kate Thornton to squash hunger and support the Pumpkins Against Poverty Appeal

Where: Spitalfields Market

When: Friday October 30 12noon – 1pm

What: Kate Thornton will be giving out pumpkin soup to shoppers to show how the vegetables are being used to squash hunger in Bangladesh

Members of the media are invited to a photocall at Spitalfields Market where Kate Thornton will be giving out pumpkin soup to support Practical Action’s work fighting hunger in Bangladesh.

Every year 18,000 tonnes of pumpkins are thrown away in the UK after being carved for Halloween*.

However, Kate will be joining staff to give out portions of free soup to the public to demonstrate how they are used in Bangladesh to help families grow their way out of extreme poverty.

In Bangladesh, 160 million people still live on less than £1 a day. In the north west of the country, on the banks of massive rivers which drain water from the Himalayas into the Indian Ocean, people have lost their land to river erosion and have few possessions.

Moreover, climate change is causing devastating floods to become ever more regular, with more families losing everything year after year. They are caught in a cycle of poverty which is almost inescapable.

But Practical Action has come up with a clever way of using pumpkins to feed families and supplement their income using sandbars which emerge from rivers as flood waters recede.

Previously, this land was considered barren and unusable, but through new growing techniques and training, people are able to grow up to 600 pumpkins a year. So far 120,000 people have benefited from this project and through Practical Action’s Pumpkins Against poverty appeal, hundreds of thousands more people can benefit.

Moreover, the UK Government are backing this appeal by matching every pound raised, meaning all public donations will have double the impact.

Kate said: “I am supporting the Pumpkins Against Poverty appeal because it shows what a huge impact a simple but clever idea can have on the lives of so many people.

“If you’re in the area, why not head down to Spitalfields Market this Friday lunchtime to see how to use pumpkins to make soup or curry this Halloween? The food is free and will be delicious - you could even donate money you would have spent on another meal to the Pumpkins Against Poverty appeal!”

*Figures from recycling waste company Hubbub (hubbub.org.uk)

Notes for editors:

For more information, or for photos from the event, contact Practical Action media officer Andrew Heath on 01926 634552 or 07800 884267

For more information about the situation in Bangladesh and the appeal, log on to www.practicalaction.org/pumpkins