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Coronavirus: Lottery winner gives away free potatoes | Coronavirus: Lottery winner gives away free potatoes |
(about 4 hours later) | |
A lottery winner has given out thousands of potatoes from her farm to help deal with food shortages caused by coronavirus panic-buying. | A lottery winner has given out thousands of potatoes from her farm to help deal with food shortages caused by coronavirus panic-buying. |
Susan Herdman, 51, hand-picked the vegetables before giving them free of charge to people in North Yorkshire. | |
She delivered spuds to self-isolating families and a home for disabled children in Boroughbridge. | She delivered spuds to self-isolating families and a home for disabled children in Boroughbridge. |
Ms Herdman took action after hearing about people stockpiling food, leading to empty shelves at supermarkets. | Ms Herdman took action after hearing about people stockpiling food, leading to empty shelves at supermarkets. |
She said: "To me, it's not a big thing, we're just giving away potatoes. | She said: "To me, it's not a big thing, we're just giving away potatoes. |
"I don't understand selfish people, I've been a giver all my life. Hopefully it proves that farmers aren't that tight." | "I don't understand selfish people, I've been a giver all my life. Hopefully it proves that farmers aren't that tight." |
Ms Herdman ran a hair salon before winning £1.2m on the lottery in 2010, moving from Herefordshire to live on the farm. | Ms Herdman ran a hair salon before winning £1.2m on the lottery in 2010, moving from Herefordshire to live on the farm. |
She had been due to plough the potatoes back into the ground after recent wet weather but changed her mind due to the coronavirus crisis. | She had been due to plough the potatoes back into the ground after recent wet weather but changed her mind due to the coronavirus crisis. |
Ms Herdman said her offer of free spuds over Facebook "spiralled out of control" and she spent all weekend delivering them. | |
She added: "I was inundated with hundreds of messages from people saying, 'in a world so dark and selfish, you have made us smile'." | She added: "I was inundated with hundreds of messages from people saying, 'in a world so dark and selfish, you have made us smile'." |
Ms Herdman also placed a large bag of potatoes in the town for people to help themselves and offered individual time slots for families to come to the farm and pick their own. | Ms Herdman also placed a large bag of potatoes in the town for people to help themselves and offered individual time slots for families to come to the farm and pick their own. |
Retailers have confirmed there is enough food to go round, but said they were struggling to get items into stores as fast as people are buying them. | |
Follow BBC Yorkshire on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Send your story ideas to yorkslincs.news@bbc.co.uk. | Follow BBC Yorkshire on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Send your story ideas to yorkslincs.news@bbc.co.uk. |
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