Almost a million homes in England and Wales are to receive emergency food parcels to ensure they have access to essential items such as food and toiletries during the coronavirus outbreak.
The first 2,000 food parcels have already been delivered this weekend to those who cannot leave their homes because severe health conditions leave them most vulnerable to the virus.
More parcels are expected to go out next week from wholesalers across the country, bringing the first set of deliveries to more than 50,000.
Depending on demand, hundreds of thousands of boxes could be delivered each week, the Government said.
The packages contain essential food and household items such as pasta, fruit, tinned goods and biscuits, for those who need to self-isolate at home for 12 weeks but have no support network of family or friends to help them.
Communities Secretary, Rt Hon Robert Jenrick MP, said: "This weekend sees the start of extraordinary steps to support the most clinically vulnerable, while they shield from coronavirus.
"We will support these people at this difficult time, and the scale of an operation like that has not been seen since the Second World War.
"This is an unprecedented package of support and I want to thank the food suppliers, local councils and everyone who has come together to create this essential service in just a matter of days."
Who qualifies for a free food parcel?
Last week, 900,000 extremely vulnerable people received letters from the NHS giving them guidance on how to shield from coronavirus.
In total up to 1.5million will be asked to stay at home for 12 weeks as the virus reaches its peak and numbers start to fall.
Those that are considered extremely vulnerable will qualify for free food parcels - a home delivery scheme that will ensure you have access to basic supplies.
It comes as online supermarkets have struggled to manage online orders over the past month, with many reaching full capacity as people stockpile on basic items.
Most supermarkets now have elderly priority hours for the vulnerable, to ensure they have access to the items they need, however, now the Government is sending food directly to those who cannot leave their homes.
How does food parcel delivery work?
The government has contacted 900,000 vulnerable people and plans to distribute free food parcels every week to more than 50,000 who have no family or friends to help them.
The first 4,000 were delivered at the weekend.
The identical parcels contain essential non-perishable supplies like pasta, cereal, fruit, tea bags, potatoes and tinned goods as well as toilet paper.
A food distribution company will deliver the packs to people's doorsteps, although in some cases local authorities, charities or emergency services may help out.
What are supermarkets doing to keep customers safe?
Branches of the main supermarkets have introduced social distancing policies to keep customers at a safe distance from one other.
These include somebody on the door operating a one in one out policy, and spacing out those queuing outside.
Inside, many supermarkets are providing hand sanitiser for customers and floor markers for till queues.
In addition, some are putting up screens between the cashiers and the public.
Other initiatives include Tesco introducing floor markings showing which direction to walk down the aisles in some of its larger stores.
Morrisons has a queuing zone if there are too many customers to be separated by the floor markings, while Asda is bringing in directional barriers.
Tesco has doubled the amount of some key items arriving in stores, including toilet rolls, pasta and rice.
Thousands of new workers have also been hired across all supermarkets to maximise the number of delivery slots and ensure everyone can order their groceries online.
