Did you know, there are 100,000 tonnes of food waste a year? Shocking (and very disapointing) right?
Last month, teapigs Matt and Natasha headed over on a volunteer day to The Felix Project. This organisation collects fresh, nutritious food that is close to exceeding its best before date and can’t be sold in supermarkets anymore. It then delivers it free of charge to charities and schools so they can provide healthy meals to vulnerable people, in the most sustainable way possible. Tea doesn’t go off as such, but as with all food we have to put a best before on the pack, that’s why it’s amazing that companies like The Felix Project exist. Let’s find out a little more…
how did you discover the felix project?
matt: Well, we had some stock (around 50,000 tea temples!) that still had a few months before it’s best before date, but supermarkets refused to take it. So, we started exploring other ways to use the stock up and The Felix Project seemed like the perfect way to get the tea to as many people who needed it as possible.
natasha: Matt invited me along to volunteer and get some coverage of the day to share on our Instagram stories to help raise awareness of this brilliant organisation.
what was the thing you found most surprising?
matt: There were two things that really stuck out for me. The first was just the sheer amount of food that was coming in (and we went on a Friday which they consider a quieter day) all of which looked like it could still be on shelves. The second thing was a statistic that 1 in 3 school children go to school without breakfast or dinner from the night before. This seemed even worse once we saw just how much food was going spare.
natasha: Before I volunteered, I was a little unaware of the types of food that food banks distribute; I think a lot of people have a stereotype that it’s just tins of soup and beans. However, we sorted through so many different products – including plenty of fresh fruit and veg, meat and fish, snacks, and some very tasty looking desserts! This was really reassuring to me that people in need would be getting a variety of quality products.
what was the best part of the day?
matt: The best part was definitely going out in the truck delivering the food. It was amazing to meet the people that run the charitable programs and see how much these donations mean to them.
natasha: Wearing the high-vis jacket and whizzing round in the big truck! Ha, no, in all seriousness I agree with Matt – delivering the items to the different organisations (including Riverside Care & Support, Chesham Community Fridge and Shalom Church) was my favourite part, as we got to see first-hand just how grateful they were.
You can find out more about The Felix Project and the fab work they do, here.
