The Felix Project slogan for supporting those in need whilst tackling food waste.
Tackling food waste
The amount of good food which goes to waste in this country is scandalous. Visualise the Royal Albert Hall filled 190 time a year with edible food that is thrown away to grasp the scale of the problem. At the same time many people in the UK, are struggling to feed themselves and their families and numbers are rising.
A local force for good
Felix is a charity which works to reduce this inequality. It has four depots serving greater London. The North West depot, which includes Ealing, is based at Park Royal. Across London, 15,000 volunteers ensure that 13,000 tonnes of food nearing the end of its shelf life is rescued from going to waste and directed to where it is needed.
How it works
Felix Project vans, and some specialist refrigerated lorries, collect from manufacturers, wholesalers and supermarkets. They collect food which can no longer be sold but is safe to eat. Sometimes food comes straight from farms where there is a glut – think pumpkins after Halloween.
Reducing hunger
Food is unloaded from the vans and sorted into storage areas, frozen, chilled and ambient temperature. It is then allocated to empty vans to be taken as required to assorted charities and organisations which ensure it goes to people who might otherwise go hungry. These include soup kitchens, food banks, hostels and primary schools in deprived areas. Some of the food also goes to the Project’s kitchen where 4,000 single-portion meals a day are created and sent out.
Cutting carbon
In addition to the carbon savings from reducing food waste, Felix is trying to cut its own carbon footprint. The fleet of vans is being converted to electric models. Also, journeys are planned to keep road miles to a minimum. Perivale depot will move out of rented accommodation to its own premises soon. The new building is being planned to be as energy efficient as possible.
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