The Felix Project

PWCF contributed £150,000 and helped to convene the Foodbank Freezer Fund in 2022. The initiative has supplied 800 fridges and freezers to food charities across the UK, enabling them to rescue and store more fresh and frozen food.

The current cost of living crisis is resulting in foodbanks, pantries and social supermarkets seeing unprecedented levels of need. Inflation and high fuel costs are leaving thousands of people struggling to afford the basics. It is those on the lowest incomes that are being most affected, and the situation is expected to get worse.

With falling food donations alongside higher demand, foodbanks are buckling under the pressure. A surprisingly low number have adequate fridges and freezers, and therefore have to turn away certain food. Providing fridges and freezers is saving more food from going to landfill.
In Glasgow, Linkes Community Rooms received a freezer:

‘Thank you for the fantastic freezer we received yesterday. We are about to open our own community pantry, so this freezer will make a huge difference.’

Baroness Louise Casey, a Trustee of PWCF who, with partner charities, helped spearhead this initiative added:

‘The need for food banks is a cause of huge national concern, but too many people would go hungry without them. Their rise in numbers across the UK before, during and after the pandemic was already a big worry and now the cost of living crisis has led to more real and enduring hardship for too many families, pensioners, and others. This action will mean many more foodbanks and charities across the UK will be able to store more fresh food and reduce the tragedy of food waste in the winter months ahead. This is the right thing to do for those in need, the sustainable environment, and especially at this time of year when so many citizens want to offer their help.’

The initiative will also leave a huge environmental legacy, with food production being responsible for around a third of the planet’s greenhouse gas emissions. By throwing it away it we are wasting all the resources that go into growing, processing, packaging and transporting food. Additionally, once in landfill, food produces methane, a powerful greenhouse gas which contributes to rising global temperatures. It is therefore vital more is done to reduce food waste and ensure edible food goes to those that need it and not into landfill.

His Majesty made a substantial personal donation to the initiative, and visited the Felix Project in February 2023.