Charities based in Ickenham are being encouraged to sign up to receive food donations through popular nationwide food donation scheme FareShare Go.
FareShare Go, run by the UK’s largest food redistribution charity FareShare, works to connect charities who require food donations with local supermarkets who have excess supplies.
Charities and community groups who download the FareShare Go App and register online can receive free donations from major chains such as Tesco, ASDA and Waitrose.
One charity already registered is Hindu temple and community centre Shree Jalaram Temple, based in Greenford, Ealing, who have redistributed food to London’s homeless for two years.
Charity Trustee Dr Mansukh Morjaria said: “Without the food we receive from Tesco through FareShare, we wouldn’t be able to do what we do.
“It has made a massive impact and it would be a struggle for us if we didn’t get the food.”
Dr Morjaria added that her charity has carried out 6,200 collections from Tesco stores, feeding more than 280,000 people who needed it in the process.
FareShare’s Chief Executive Lindsay Boswell added: “I would urge any organisation to sign up to the scheme and access free surplus food.
“We know that there are thousands of people going hungry across the UK, and many frontline charities and community groups offering much needed support where they can.
“Through our scheme, we work closely with retailers to ensure that no good food goes to waste and ends up on people’s plates instead of landfill.”
In addition to providing resources for organisations who need it, reducing food waste is an important step in helping the environment and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.
Nearly eight thousand charities across the UK are already signed up for the scheme, with over 3,500 supermarkets participating.
Organisations interested in receiving regular donations of surplus food through the programme can register on the FareShare website: www.fareshare.org.uk/fareshare-go.
