Unilever Canada taking action to help Canadians affected by COVID-19

April 1, 2020, Toronto, Ont. – As part of its global commitment to support the fight against the coronavirus pandemic, Unilever Canada is donating $3 million of essential goods to Canadians in need through food banks which are experiencing high demand due to economic uncertainty.

The company’s actions in Canada are part of Unilever’s global efforts to help protect the lives and livelihoods of the communities it supports, including its customers, suppliers, and workforce.

Unilever Canada is donating $3 million of food, soap, personal hygiene, and home cleaning products to charitable organizations in need, including Food Banks Canada, Second Harvest, The Salvation Army, Simcoe Caring Cupboard, Good Shepherd and Action Nouvelle Vie.

Unilever will donate soap, personal care, home hygiene and food products from its leading brands, such as personal wash products and wipes, cleaners and paper towels, soup, pasta sauce, mayonnaise, teas and gummy vitamins and supplements.

“While there is always a need, the extreme demands of the COVID-19 pandemic has made helping the most vulnerable in our communities much harder,” said Chris Hatch, CEO of Food Banks Canada. “This generous donation from Unilever will be delivered to more than 3,000 food banks and agencies that Food Banks Canada supports. It will help keep food bank shelves stocked with the food and household goods that are needed to serve our communities from coast to coast. We are incredibly grateful for the ongoing support from Unilever.”

Additionally, to respond to the urgent need and safety of frontline healthcare workers, Unilever’s Simcoe and Rexdale factories in Ontario will donate more than 30,000 masks to frontline healthcare workers in their communities who put themselves at risk every day.

Worldwide, Unilever is offering approximately $776 million of cashflow relief to support livelihoods across its extended value chain. This action includes early payment for its most vulnerable small and medium-sized suppliers, to help them with financial liquidity. Unilever will also extend credit to selected small-scale retail customers whose business relies on Unilever, to help them manage the crisis and protect jobs.

Unilever is protecting its global workforce from sudden drops in pay as a result of market disruption or being unable to perform their role, for up to three months. This covers all employees, contractors and others who the company manages or who work on Unilever’s sites, on a full- or part-time basis. This applies to workers not already covered by government plans or by their direct employer.

Gary Wade, president of Unilever Canada, said, “We are committed to supporting Canadians directly affected by COVID-19 with the products they need to protect the wellbeing of themselves, their families and their communities. Our frontline teams working in our factories, distribution centres and retail continue to go above and beyond to ensure Canadians have essential goods for their families. I’m grateful to our employees and partners who are working every day to make a difference in supporting our consumers, customers, and suppliers.”

Unilever is one of the world’s leading suppliers of beauty and personal care, home care, and foods and refreshment products with sales in over 190 countries and reaching 2.5 billion consumers a day.