North East bakery giant Greggs has reached a major milestone after providing the equivalent of over one million meals 鈥 420 tonnes of surplus food 鈥 to charities and community groups across the 海角视频.
The Newcastle firm said it had reached the huge goal through its partnership with FareShare, the 海角视频鈥檚 biggest food redistribution charity. The charity aims to tackle the environmental issue of food waste by redistributing surplus food from businesses like Greggs, helping to support communities by providing food to those who need it the most.
The two organisations launched their partnership in 2014 and over the years it has grown from end-of-day charity collections from Greggs shops into a collaboration that takes surplus food direct from Greggs鈥 distribution and manufacturing sites. That move has significantly increased the amount of food Greggs has been able to supply, growing from four tonnes in 2017 to over 30 tonnes in the past year.
As part of the partnership, Greggs has supplied products including chargrilled chicken, fruit pots, and sandwich mixes, for charitable distribution including food banks, after school clubs, women鈥檚 refuges, homeless shelters and community larders. Food provided in the last year has supported more than 1,500 charities across the 海角视频, including regions serviced by FareShare鈥檚 distribution centres in Glasgow, the North East, Yorkshire, Manchester, the Midlands, London, Wales, and Southampton.
Reducing food waste forms one of Greggs鈥 key priorities which it outlined in its sustainability plan The Greggs Pledge. By 2025, the company aims to reduce food surplus by 25% compared to 2018 levels.
Alongside its partnership with FareShare, Greggs also redistributes unsold food through end of day donations to around 1,000 海角视频 charities, selling discounted bags at over 1,000 shops through Too Good To Go and via its network of Greggs Outlet shops, which sell day old food at reduced prices and then donate a share of profits to local community organisations dedicated to tackling food poverty and improving social mobility. In 2023, Greggs donated almost 拢650,000 of outlet shop profits to community grants.
Greggs chief executive Roisin Currie said: 鈥淎chieving one million meals provided in collaboration with FareShare demonstrates our commitment to tackling food waste and supporting communities across the 海角视频. This partnership is complementary to our other food redistribution initiatives, allowing us to make a significant positive impact as we continue to expand our sustainability efforts and provide food to those who need it the most.鈥
Polly Hofmann, head of strategic food partnerships at FareShare, said: 鈥淲e are enormously grateful to the team at Greggs for their continued support and reaching the significant milestone of providing the equivalent of one million meals. Since 2014 Greggs has worked with us to ensure regular supplies of surplus food to help support our network of over 8,000 charities across the 海角视频. These range from afterschool and breakfast clubs to hospices, domestic abuse refuges and homelessness shelters, all providing vital services.
鈥淲ith demand at an all-time high, the support of our partners in the food industry is more important than ever. By providing FareShare with surplus products, Greggs has made a huge difference to ensure that good food goes to people, not waste, and helped support and strengthen communities across the country.鈥
