Blas y Tir are proud to be supporting food distribution charity, Fareshare, through our parent company, Puffin Produce.
“These partnerships are so important because it highlights the vital work that needs to be done to make use of surplus food that can help feed people and communities in need.”
Those are the words of Matthew Thomas, Head of Sales and Marketing at Pembrokeshire-based Puffin Produce, one of many businesses in the food supply chain working hard in the fight against food poverty. The partnership he refers to is that with food redistribution charity FareShare. FareShare works with the food industry to rescue edible surplus food and distribute it to a network of 8,000 charities and community groups across the UK.
Puffin Produce supports the charity’s ‘Surplus with Purpose’ scheme, which works to cover the extra costs of redistributing unsold food that is still good to eat, preventing it going to waste. To date, produce donated by Puffin has been used to create two million meals for people in need across Wales.
FareShare is the UK’s largest food redistribution charity and the ‘Surplus with Purpose’ scheme supports businesses across the food industry from growers to manufacturers and wholesalers.
Puffin Produce – the largest supplier of Welsh produce in Wales, supplying potatoes and seasonal vegetables to retailers and wholesalers – started working with FareShare in 2020, providing surplus potatoes and leeks, and was recognised by FareShare as a Leading Food Partner back in 2022.
“Reducing food waste is integral to us and if we can do this while helping charities across the UK, this is perfect synergy,” said Matthew.
“FareShare helps so many vulnerable people and communities, it’s a fabulous organisation to support. If your food supply business has any surplus produce you would normally throw away, we’d urge you to think about how this product can be redistributed to help others and reduce waste.
“The process of donating is simple and the FareShare team are on hand to support you through the entire process. The produce that we’ve donated has been used to create two million meals, a huge achievement and something we are very proud of.”
Puffin are not the only businesses backing the cause, with their insurer NFU Mutual also proud to continue throwing its support behind the campaign. Since 2021, the NFU Mutual Charitable Trust has backed FareShare’s fight against food poverty and has donated a total of £350,000 to the charity.
Beth Pritchard, Community Engagement Consultant at NFU Mutual, said: “As the leading rural insurer, we have been championing the opportunity for growers and producers to support the surplus with purpose scheme to help ensure excess produce is redistributed to those who really need it – as NFU Mutual is proud to be a long-standing supporter of FareShare.
“It is important throughout the year – especially in January after the festive period – to continue supporting people facing food poverty where possible, and we applaud the whole team at Puffin Produce for their outstanding effort in backing the work FareShare does.”
One of the charities to benefit from Puffin’s surplus product is Ystradowen Community Centre, which is based in Swansea and provided services and activities to the people of Ystradowen and the surrounding communities.
Emily Jones, Community Support Supervisor from the centre, said: “The leeks and potatoes we received from FareShare Cymru were a great help, allowing us to prepare nutritious meals for elderly members of our community, many of whom rarely have access to home-cooked food. Sitting down together and socialising over a meal is an excellent way to reduce loneliness among our clients. For some, it’s the only opportunity they have to speak and connect with others.”
FareShare’s ‘Surplus with Purpose’ fund contributes to the cost of harvest or transporting surplus food and can help your business identify surplus food that could be redirected to charities. Find out more about the scheme at fareshare.org.