The Guinness Partnership is helping tackle Hunger in Devon and Cornwall
The Guinness Partnership is helping tackle hunger in Devon and Cornwall by supporting two charities.
One ensures surplus vegetables don’t rot in the fields, while the other collects essentials from supermarkets and helps them reach people who can’t afford them.
The Guinness Partnership, housing association, provided a donation to Devon and Cornwall Food Action to pay for a new van, equipped with a chiller and all the mod cons they need. The van is used to collect food and essentials from supermarkets and other suppliers before it is taken to one of their hubs.
Once there, charities and other organisations distribute it to those who need it.
A second donation from Guinness has enabled Gleaning Cornwall to pay for transport, training and equipment to enable its volunteers to harvest veg which farmers can’t sell (because they’re the wrong shape or there’s a surplus) and then distribute them to community kitchens throughout the area.
Alistair Smyth, Director of Social Affairs and Social Investment, said:“Times are tough right now and we want to do all we can to help those most affected within our communities. Last year Guinness’s food partners supported over 3,000 households to access healthy and affordable food – these new partnerships will help more people to access food, and also reduce food waste.
“Both Devon and Cornwall Food Action and Gleaning Cornwall are working hard to ensure people get the help they need, it’s why we’re giving them this support so they can keep working to change people’s lives for the better.”
Alan Dunne, Chairman of Devon and Cornwall Food Action, said people are increasingly struggling to make ends meet.
He said: “Devon and Cornwall is a beautiful part of the world but full of poverty.
“Eighty-two per cent of people who use this service work for a living and still can’t make ends meet. The price of everything is going up but not the income to match. You have people who used to be secure financially and now they are asking for help – that takes some courage.”
Holly Whitelaw, founder of Gleaning Cornwall, said the need for her charity’s work was on the rise too.
“Thanks to The Guinness Partnership, we’ve been able to continue into our second year, which is challenging, because of drought, dramatically reduced supplies and a massive increase in need. Currently, there is sadly more food going out of food banks, than going in.
She added their work has an environmental impact too.
“We throw away 6.6 million tonnes of household food waste a year in the UK. If we had to replace all the wasted food and drink in the country, we would need an area nearly the size of Wales,” she said.
