Fareshare has received a £200,000 fund from the Scottish government to fight food waste.
The grant is set to go towards the charity’s ‘Surplus with Purpose’ initiative, which works with suppliers in the food chain to cover the costs involved in getting unsold good-to-eat food to families in need.
The investment is estimated to save approximately 890 tonnes of food from going to waste, which equals around two million meals.
According to the charity, over one quarter of food grown across the UK is never eaten and accounts for between six to seven per cent of greenhouse gas emissions across the country.
READ MORE: Tesco stops over 5m meals going to waste in partnership with Olio
“While some surplus food is unavoidable, it is often cheaper for farmers and producers to send that for waste treatment, feed it to animals, or plough it back into fields, when it could be used to make healthy meals,” Fareshare Scottish affairs lead Jon Molyneux said.
“Thanks to this funding we can help Scottish producers step up the fight against food waste ahead of COP26 in Glasgow, as well as helping to provide more than two million meals in communities across Scotland.”
Cabinet Secretary for net zero, energy and transport Michael Matheson added: “This is a really positive project that will help good causes access good food.
“Community food organisations are doing so much to bring people and communities together, tackling isolation and supporting wellbeing – this investment will help to further these efforts.”
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