Jacek Polewski came to Bucha last week, moved by images of the cruelty inflicted on the town by invading Russian forces, Polish state news agency PAP reported.
Accompanied by his son and a friend, Polewski brought 500 kg of flour to help a local bakery he had contacted through the internet.
The establishment first had to be refurbished, which “took two days,” said Polewski, who owns a bakery in the western Polish city of Poznań.
During the Russian occupation, some of the troops had been stationed at the bakery, “stealing baking forms, plates and basic kitchen equipment,” he told the PAP news agency.
Giving out fresh bread
According to the Polish baker, with many relief agencies active on the ground, “food is no longer a problem for the people of Bucha, but the products they receive are mainly dry or packaged, not fresh.”
“When we managed to bake some loaves, we went to give them out to people from an apartment block that is still cut off from electricity, gas and water,” he recounted.
“They all literally leapt at this warm, fresh bread,” Polewski said.
He added: “Fresh bread symbolises homely warmth and security.”
Due to an impending Russian offensive, the bakery has had to relocate to the capital Kyiv for the time being, for security reasons, the PAP news agency reported.
“We’ll be baking bread and cakes for Orthodox Easter, and supplying the military hospital and Ukrainian troops,” Polewski said.
A bakery owner from Poland’s western city of Poznań, in the future he plans to make bread both in Bucha and Kyiv.
Thursday is day 57 of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
(pm/gs)
Source: PAP