FAMILIES living below the poverty line and people in financial difficulties will be able to take advantage of discounts on certain daily necessities at Minrun supermarkets.

Minrun Supermarket was designated Sunday as a community charity supermarket, the first of its kind in China, yesterday’s Chinese-language newspapers reported.

According to a cooperation agreement signed between the Shenzhen Charity Association and Minrun Supermarket on Sunday, people with financial difficulties and low-income families who are granted Minrun charity cards can shop at much lower prices at Minrun’s 59 outlets in Shenzhen.

The supermarket’s operations manager said charity status would soon be extended to Minrun’s other shops in the Pearl River Delta region.

The seven charity supermarkets which were set up earlier mainly depend on public donations and financial assistance from the government. In contrast, the Minrun community charity stores will set up donation corners, hold fund-raising activities regularly and recruit volunteers.

Besides offering discounts for people in difficulties, the Minrun charity supermarkets will also launch their own donation scheme where one yuan (US$0.13) will be donated to charity for each item bought in the stores, according to Liu Runhua, chief of the Shenzhen Municipal Civil Affairs Bureau.

Low-income families welcomed the establishment of the community charity stores. A low-income woman surnamed Wang said the opening of the Minrun charity supermarkets has ensured that people like her would be able to enjoy the lowest possible discounts without traveling a long distance, she said.

(Cai Yingbo)