The food redistribution charity collected over six tonnes of food donated by protesting farmers in London this week
City Harvest, a London-based food redistribution charity, attended the farmer’s protest march in the capital on Tuesday (19 November) to collect a mass food donation.
The march, organised by farmers to protest against recent changes to agricultural inheritance tax reliefs, saw participants bringing British-grown produce to donate to those in need.
City Harvest collected and redistributed 6.7 tonnes of high-quality British food - the equivalent of 15,400 meals - to those living in food insecurity across London and beyond.
City Harvest CEO Sarah Calcutt said: “This initiative highlights the resilience and generosity of the farming community, emphasising their commitment to feeding the nation despite challenging circumstances.”
She added that City Harvest’s recent food report, ‘Harvesting Optimism: Understanding the British Food Industry’s Struggle on Self-Sufficiency’, looks at the issues the rise of the cost of living is having on the ability for UK growers to afford to compete with imported produce, and the social impact in the UK of increasing malnutrition.
”We are so grateful for the donations and know how life changing nutritious food is for people who struggle to afford fresh produce for their families. From our research that forms our annual value reports we are acutely aware that malnutrition is a huge generational threat to the UK,” Calcutt said.
Established 2014, City Harvest is the UK’s third largest food redistribution charity, based in London, collecting and sharing food throughout the UK via the Xcess network, of which it is a founder member.
Each week over 120 tonnes of food is rescued from retailers, manufacturers, distributors, events and is delivered, free of charge, to organisations feeding people unable to access or afford food, such as schools, community centres, food banks, women’s refuges, homeless charities, soup kitchens and refugee centres.
City Harvest has sites in Acton, New Spitalfields Market and New Covent Garden Market.
