Leicester Giving Day is working in partnership with Fareshare Midlands, with support from Sandicliffe Ford, to increase food donations

 

Leicester Giving Day organiser, Embark CSR, has joined forces with the region’s largest food redistribution charity Fareshare Midlands to call on Leicester and Leicestershire based food retailers to continue to support food banks and community organisations with donations of surplus food; and premier motor dealer, Sandicliffe Ford, is lending a hand too. 

 

Spurred on by Fareshare UK’s recent analysis highlighted on the BBC’s website on the 5th October, that it has seen a drop of around 100 tonnes in supermarket surplus donations every month this summer, campaign organisers are keen to use Leicester Giving Day on the 18th November to press home the message that communities in need still require the support of big and small food retailers alike. 

 

Chris Shaw and Stacey Wragg, who have set up Leicester Giving Day, said “As the financial crisis bites, and families in the city and county struggle to put food on the table for their children, we are calling on big and small food retailers alike to rethink the idea of ‘food waste’ and to work with organisations like Fareshare Midlands to ensure as much food as possible can be distributed to charities. Our aim is to ramp up giving throughout October and to showcase how food retailers are helping on Leicester Giving Day.” 

 

FareShare Midlands CEO, Simone Connolly, said “Our need for surplus food is reaching levels never seen before, even at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic. Prices are rising and the level of food we receive has been dropping by an amount so significant that we’re struggling to meet the need of our existing members - let alone take on new ones. Vulnerable families across Leicestershire are really feeling the pressure and we’re frustrated that we can’t do more. We urgently need local food suppliers to work with us, to get their nutritious, good-to-eat surplus food redistributed out in the community. We are so grateful to Leicester Giving Day and their partners for helping us to spread the word.” 

 

Leading companies in the city and county are backing the campaign including Sandicliffe Ford who are donating the use of an all-electric van for the day on the 18th November to aid collections. 

 

Any food retailers in the city and county who would like to start making donations of surplus food to Fareshare Midlands should visit the website https://faresharemidlands.org.uk/food-donation/ or Chris Shaw from Embark CSR via email chris@embarkcsr.co.uk