The Felix Project launches new platform for small, one-off food donations

The Felix Project has launched a new tool that will help the food industry further reduce the amount of edible food going to waste.

The platform, called Felix Connect, directly links those with one-off food donations at risk of being thrown away to those feeding people in need.

The London-based food redistribution charity says the automated service was designed to solve the issue of them often having to turn down “small, immediate, ad hoc or quirky food donations” because of the resources needed to collect, store and deliver the food.

According to the charity, Felix Connect is a streamlined service that reduces the time and investment needed to redistribute the food.

Instead of food having to come to one of the four Felix depots, the software links caterers, events companies, retailers, and suppliers directly to community organisations across the capital.

Once a food donation is posted, groups will automatically be informed of the offer. They can then accept whichever offers are most suitable and collect the food themselves.

Over the last year, The Felix Project has run a small pilot with 35 community groups. In that trial period, 95 food offers were submitted and over 2,300kg of food was rescued.

The food charity is now opening the platform to all the charities it works with and hopes over 800 others will join.

The St Vincent de Paul Society Soup Run was one of the 35 groups that benefitted from the trial. It provides food, drinks, clothing and more to homeless people in central London.

President and branch coordinator, Sharon Joseph, said: “Felix Connect gives us the additional bonus of being able to give non-perishable shopping to those who have a cupboard and microwave for preparing some meals.

“Drinks, canned and packaged goods that last for days or even weeks give our clients a boost for when they have no vouchers for other food banks. We appreciate every single offer we get and collect with no issues.”

Felix Connect manager Georgie Czernobay added: “It’s really exciting to be expanding and offering this service to all our community groups, especially after such positive results from the pilot.

“We are confident it will allow us to accept more food, develop better partnerships with new and potential food suppliers, and ultimately feed more people.

“The Felix Project already works with over 300 suppliers and does what it can to accept as much food as possible, however this is logistically not always possible.

“Felix Connect is another string to our bow when it comes to helping the food industry continue to reduce food waste.”