FareShare, the UK’s biggest food waste charity, is calling on food businesses to share their seasonal surplus with those in need this winter.

The rise in the cost-of-living has had a disproportionate impact on people already struggling to make ends meet. 1 in 5 people in the UK, including 4 million children, worry about where their next meal is going to come from*.

FareShare has launched its winter campaign to help turn more surplus food into meals for people in need, with the help of food and drink retailers, manufacturers and foodservice operators.

The food given will be distributed to 8,500 frontline charities and community groups across the UK, reaching a wide variety of those in need including school breakfast clubs, older people’s lunch clubs, homeless shelters and community cafes. Each week, FareShare is able to provide enough food to make almost a million meals for vulnerable people.

To sign up and prevent good food from going to waste, food businesses are encouraged to visit http://fareshare.org.uk/winterfood and fill in the form – FareShare will do the rest.

Speaking about the initiative, Simon Millard, Director of Food at FareShare has said:

“We know that surplus food can be put to good use – it’s what we do. In 2022-23, 91% of the food we provided was excess that otherwise would have gone to waste. By signing up, your business’s seasonal surplus can make a huge difference the lives of people across the UK.”

The demand for food has skyrocketed. At the same time there is still so much surplus food that could be going to people who need it. While there are so many people facing food insecurity, FareShare’s network of charities, volunteers and food partners work together to ensure that no good food goes to waste.

Simon Millard continues:

“This initiative helps the environment too – for every tonne of surplus food we’ve redistributed, we’ve prevented the waste of 2 tonnes of CO2e and 2.66 million litres of water. Through reducing emissions and providing meals to people who need it, FareShare takes the environmental problem of food waste and turns it into a social good. Just another reason to smile!”

FareShare is the UK’s longest running food redistribution charity, born almost 30 years ago out of the belief that no good food should go to waste. FareShare is the UK’s national network of charitable food redistributors, made up of 18 independent organisations who take good quality surplus food from right across the food industry and get it to nearly 8,500 frontline charities and community groups.

For more information about the work carried out by FareShare, visit https://fareshare.org.uk/winterfood.