Bulmers Apple Growers Donate £25,000 to Celebrate St Michaels’s Hospice 25th Anniversary

February 19 2010

At the start of the 2009 apple harvest, Bulmers' growers were asked whether they would like to donate 50p to St Michael's Hospice for each tonne of their apples delivered to the new mill in Ledbury. With a matching donation from Bulmers, the scheme has now raised a whopping £25,000.

Some growers have also sent donation cheques directly to the Bulmers' Fruit Office, where the fund raising efforts have been co-ordinated. Bulmers has match-funded all the money raised from the cider apples and the other donations, and then topped up the amount to a total of £25,000.

Rod Lees, Head of Orcharding for Bulmers, said: 'With the growers' donations and our own match-funding, we had already exceeded the total we raised for St Michael's Hospice in 2004. That's a tremendous achievement in the current economic climate and shows a heart warming level of generosity amongst our growers. However, to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the St Michael’s Hospice, we felt it would be highly appropriate to top the funds up even further, to a nice round £25,000!

'We had a good harvest in 2009; the first full year for the new mill in Ledbury went well and, as usual, the commitment of our growers, hauliers and mill team, keeping the apples coming in around the clock, was brilliant. To be able to make a donation of this magnitude, to such a worthy cause, is a marvellous way of rounding off the harvest for another year. The partnership of apple growing and cider making has many benefits for our communities here in Herefordshire and this is a great example of one of them.'

Nicky West, Chief Executive of St Michael’s Hospice, said: ‘Situated in rural Herefordshire, we serve the local community and surrounding five counties. Since the first patient was admitted on 31st October 1984, more than 20,000 people and their families have benefited from the care we offer.
'We are an independent charity and all our services are given free. It costs over £10,000 per day to provide these services and around 90% of our funding comes from the community,' she said.
'Bulmers has supported the Hospice for many years and this donation, in celebration of our 25th Anniversary is absolutely magnificent. On behalf of the staff, patients and families who will benefit, I would like to thank the Bulmers’ growers and Gill, Chris and Ben for their efforts and generosity.'

© NACM 2008