East Lothian restaurant owner extends food donations to Edinburgh Zoo

An East Lothian restaurant owner has extended food donations to supply Edinburgh Zoo.
Tens of thousands are spent on food for the 1000 animals each monthTens of thousands are spent on food for the 1000 animals each month
Tens of thousands are spent on food for the 1000 animals each month

Graham Blaikie, the owner of family-run, restaurant and bar, The Mercat Grill in Whitecraig, East Lothian will now regularly donate food supplies to the animals at Edinburgh Zoo, in addition to people, desperately in need of sustenance.

In March, The Royal Zoological Society of Scotland closed up in line with government guidance due to the coronavirus pandemic, however there are 1000 animals residing in the Corstorphine premises which still need fed.

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The zoo revealed that food to sustain the animals costs tens of thousands of pounds each month and has appealed to the public to donate much needed funds to ensure that the animals are still fed.

Graham Blaikie, owner of the Mercat Grill said: “My mum heard that Edinburgh Zoo was in urgent need of monetary donations to help finance feeding their 1000 animals during lockdown, which costs them tens of thousands of pounds every month.

“So, following on from our ‘Soup(er) Hero campaign to help feed people in desperate need – we wanted to do what we can to help the animals at this incredibly difficult time, when the bulk of the zoo’s income, comes from visitors.

“Therefore, we’re going to donate as much produce as we can on a regular basis. So far, we’ve dropped off 12 crates of fruit, vegetables and salmon.”

Mercat Grill’s Soup(er) Hero campaign launched last month with an aim to get homemade soup and sandwiches to anyone in urgent need, during the covid-19 crisis.