A year-long partnership will add two tins of beans per week to 1,500 parcels supporting families and individuals across Dublin. On 17 December 2025 the Stelios Philanthropic Foundation has today announced a major donation of €300,000 worth of food to the Capuchin Day Centre, marking the Foundation’s first food-distribution partnership in Ireland.
The donation, comprising 200,000 tins of Batchelors Baked Beans, will ensure that two tins of beans are added to every weekly food parcel distributed by the Centre over the next twelve months, providing vital support to families and individuals facing rising living costs. The surplus will be used for daily hot breakfasts served at the centre.
The Foundation’s ‘Food from the Heart’ programme first launched in Greece and Cyprus in 2012 and provides 200,000 snacks to those in need each month through 12 distribution centres. The programme has since expanded to the UK, where in partnership with the https://www.trussell.org.uk/ it will distribute a year’s supply of chilli con carne tins in 2025. Earlier this year in France, the Foundation announced a partnership with https://www.restosducoeur.org/, a major French charity providing free food and support, supplying tins of mixed vegetables.
The partnership with the https://capuchindaycentre.ie/ extends this model to Ireland for the first time, supporting one of the country’s largest charities working with people experiencing homelessness, poverty and family hardship with the provision of 200,000 tins of beans with a retail value of €300,000 purchased from supplier https://valeofoods.ie/.
The Capuchin Day Centre provides over 300 breakfasts and 700 hot meals daily, alongside clinical services, family supports, and a crucial weekly distribution of 1,500 grocery parcels. Demand for these services continues to grow, with the Centre supporting adults and families experiencing homelessness, food insecurity or social exclusion.
Photo of Dan Mulhall (right) former Irish Ambassador to the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany and Malaysia and advisor to Sir Stelios and the Stelios Foundation, Fr Kevin Kiernan, Capuchin Director (middle) and Aonghus O’Maicin from Rockwood PR (left).
Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou said: “The Foundation aims to help as many people as possible, as directly as possible, and the Capuchin Day Centre represents exactly the kind of frontline organisation we want to support. Their daily work offers dignity, nourishment and hope to thousands of people across Dublin, and it is an honour for us to contribute in a practical way. By supplying a year’s worth of a high-demand food product, we can make an immediate difference while also strengthening the Centre’s ability to serve a growing community. I am delighted that our first partnership of this kind in Ireland supports such a respected and compassionate charity.”
Fr Kevin Kiernan, Capuchin Director at the Capuchin Day Centre, added: “This donation from the Stelios Philanthropic Foundation could not come at a more important time for the people we support. Tinned beans may seem simple, but for many families they are one of the most valuable and nutritious items in a weekly parcel when budgets are under real pressure. Knowing that we can include two tins every week for the next year provides enormous reassurance to the thousands of people who depend on us. We are deeply grateful to Sir Stelios and his Foundation for recognising this need and responding so generously. Their support will have a very real impact on people experiencing food insecurity across Dublin.”
