Waitrose and FareShare tackle food waste with farms trial
Waitrose has announced a new trial that will redirect surplus farm food to families in need.
This will see it team up with some of its biggest suppliers and food distribution organisation FareShare.
From 1st March through to 30th June, Waitrose will be providing funds to FareShare to contribute to the distribution of surplus food from its farms, taking away all handling costs from farmers and helping them to maximise the number of donations they can make.
This includes diverting food surplus directly from the retailer’s own farm on the Leckford Estate.
In total, over five million surplus apples, cucumbers, crooked carrots, mushrooms, peppers, sweet baby sprouts and tomatoes will be redirected - aiming to create more than one million meals for vulnerable families across the UK.
Waitrose has also purchased and will provide one million British eggs (donated by Stonegate) and almost 22 tonnes of British beef (donated by Dovecote Park).
James Bailey, Executive Director of Waitrose, comments: “We’ve all been inspired by the brilliant work Marcus Rashford has been doing, and we believe there is now a real opportunity for the industry to stand united and help tackle food poverty right from the farm.”
He adds: “While farm surplus is put to good use, we must do everything in our power to divert any edible food we can to families that need them during this pandemic.”
“As the only supermarket to own and run its own farm, we know how much pressure farmers are under to keep the nation fed, so it’s vital this burden and cost does not rest on their shoulders.”
“This is why we will be funding all handling costs until the end of June to get food on the plates of those that need it most. This is just the start and we hope this will lead to us achieving our goal to one day eradicate all avoidable and edible farm waste.”
Lindsay Boswell, CEO at FareShare, comments: “This is a significant moment in our battle against food waste and hunger in the UK.”
“Working with Waitrose farms and suppliers offers us a fantastic opportunity to access food that would otherwise end up going to waste, at a time when millions of people are going hungry across the UK.”
“We have pioneered smaller projects with farmers, growers and producers to stop food waste through our Surplus with Purpose scheme, but far more still needs to be done, and the involvement of Waitrose in tackling food waste is a major step forward.”
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