The RKW Project
Over the last four months, FareShare Cymru have been trialing their Redistribution Kitchen Wales project, where surplus food is being made into nutritionally balanced, affordable meals, and distributed to local community groups. Since starting the trial, 5,160 meals have been prepared and distributed thanks to the dedicated efforts of our team of chefs and kitchen volunteers.
At FareShare Cymru, we redistribute good-to-eat surplus food from the food industry that would otherwise have gone to waste, to 171 charities across Wales who work to tackle the ever-growing presence of poverty. Since last year, we’ve managed to distribute 1039 tonnes of food to communities across the country, enough to make over 2.4 million meals.
The Redistribution Kitchen Wales project started as a way to use and repurpose harder –to-use surplus food so that more people could easily access nutritious meals. Funding for the project was awarded by the Sustainable Food Challenge, a partnership between Cardiff Council, Monmouthshire County Council, the Cardiff Capital Region Challenge Fund, and Welsh Government, supported by the SBRI (Small Business Research Initiative) Centre of Excellence. It aims to identify and support projects that can harness the potential of land, technology, and people to increase the sustainable production and supply of locally grown food in the Cardiff Capital Region.
Partnerships
The RKW project has been made possible through the generous support of Cardiff and Vale College, which has provided us with access to the kitchen facilities at their City Centre campus. Anthony Ruston, Head of Department – Catering and Retail Operations at CAVC, said:
“It has been a privilege to be able to work with FareShare Cymru on this project. The work they do distributing food to those that need it the most in our communities is great, and it has been good to be able to play a small part in that journey.
It has been great to see the trial go from strength to strength, and I have loved seeing food leave our kitchen to go on to local projects and charities. Food insecurity affects educational outcomes, so by playing a part of improving this in the communities we serve, we are supporting to improve this.”
Collaboration with local organisations has been key to the project’s success. By working with Cardiff and Vale Public Health Dietetic Team, we’ve been able to ensure that all meals distributed contain at least two of the five recommended daily servings of fruit and vegetables. Castell Howell, a leading food wholesaler based in West Wales, have kindly donated necessary ingredients to accompany the surplus ingredients donated to FareShare Cymru. Edward Morgan, Group CSR and Training Manager, from Castell Howell emphasised the importance of the project, stating:
“Castell Howell recognise the urgency to provide healthy, nutritious meals to communities across Wales. This project is an exciting new concept to help deliver this goal, adding value to surplus food and promoting the benefits of kitchen prepared food and varied diets. We look forward to seeing this project evolve and are grateful of the opportunity to support its development.”
At the end of May, the initial RKW trial will come to an end and FareShare Cymru will begin to look at making the Redistribution Kitchen Wales an ongoing project. In order to do so, we need to be able to access more surplus food and have access to a professional kitchen space in the Cardiff and Vale region.
Cllr Geraint Thomas, Leader of Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council, chairs the Challenge Fund’s strategy board and he has commented:
“We are delighted to support FareShare Cymru’s innovative project tackling food industry waste, at a time where so many are struggling with rising costs and food poverty. The Redistribution Kitchen Waste Project shows what is possible at a local community level, when innovative ideas are embraced and delivered by people who want to make a difference.”
For media inquiries, please contact:
Hannah Thomas
Marketing and Communications Lead
Hannah@fareshare.cymru