In light of Christmas cheer, some of Manchester’s largest companies have donated staff to make sure none went without a good meal on Christmas day.
On 22 December, FareShare North-West welcomed volunteers from Cargill’s, Sodexho, Kellogg’s and JD Williams into its depot to help sort a staggering 30 tonnes of food destined for the plates of those most in need over the festive period.
The food was donated through the Buckingham Emergency Food Appeal, in conjunction with the National Farmers’ Union. Once sorted, it was distributed free of charge to nominated charities and other groups and cooked to provide warm meals for the homeless and those in poverty across the region.
FareShare North-West currently supplies 43 groups in Manchester. These, in turn, help an average of 1,300 clients every day – from the unemployed and those on low incomes, to school breakfast clubs and people facing homelessness or problems with addiction. With over six million people in the UK struggling on low incomes and charities fighting to maintain high levels of service while fulfilling ever-greater demands, a free supply of food can be a lifeline for organisations and the individuals they serve.
Angela Shannon, Support Worker at the Cornerstone Day Centre in Moss Side, which provides food for up to 150 clients every day, said: “Many of these people would face malnutrition if they were unable to secure food from Cornerstone on a daily basis. FareShare’s unfailing support has proved vital to our purpose in the past and will almost certainly prove vital to our continued work in the future.”
A third of all waste produced in the UK comes from the food sector. Nationally, FareShare has agreements with most of the major supermarkets, including Asda, M&S, Sainsbury and manufacturers such as Pataks and Nestle. However, demand frequently outstrips supply, and Fareshare North-West actively seeks new partnerships to bolster its supplies.
Project Manager Paul Beswick said: “Since we began operations in August 2008, we’ve redistributed over 200 tonnes of fit for purpose food from the food industry, but earlier in the year our stock levels were at rock bottom. If any food manufacturers or retailers out there would like to talk about working in partnership, we can guarantee that their surplus food will be put to good use!”
Aside from the corporate volunteers assisting on 22 December, the scheme has provided work experience and training opportunities for 38 volunteers, many of whom lack formal qualifications or have experienced long term unemployment. It also runs public cookery demonstrations around East Manchester to promote healthy eating and living.
Editor’s notes:
- FareShare North West is run by EMERGE Food, a new initiative of the East Manchester-based sustainable waste management social enterprise EMERGE 3Rs. EMERGE secured the franchise to establish a FareShare distribution hub in early 2008 and began operations in August 2008.
- FareShare is the national charity working to relieve food poverty by providing quality food and related life-skills training to a network of 450 community organisations working with disadvantaged people across the UK
- FareShare’s National Impact Survey showed that nearly a fifth (17%) of clients surveyed had gone up to a week without a meal, while 33% who rely on projects for their main meal often have nowhere else to eat.
For more information, or for high resolution images, please contact:
Paul Beswick
Project Development Manager
FareShare North West
0161 223 8200
