Nationwide Produce donated 2,839kg of surplus food to City Harvest London in September 2021. This produce was collected from the New Spitalfields markets and distributed to those unable to feed themselves and their families in the East London area. 

Phil Johnson, Group Director of Nationwide Produce PLC, said, “We are passionate about reducing food waste and tackling food poverty. Our partnerships with charities such as City Harvest London allows us to help thousands of people who we wouldn’t be able to otherwise reach.”

The Nationwide Produce team have supplied 6,756 meals to City Harvest London. This provides invaluable support to those who need it most. The collaboration between the two businesses started in New Spitalfields markets where both Nationwide Produce and City Harvest London have a firm presence. 

City Harvest London delivers over 1 million meals a month to every kind of charity group including food banks, faith groups, community centres, domestic abuse refuges, hostels, shelters, food banks, schools, refugee centres, mental health centres, family centres and youth clubs. The fresh produce donated by Nationwide Produce PLC helps City Harvest London to provide free, healthy food to over 350 charities. Their donation stops people from having to make the choice between heating and eating. With the bitter winter nights closing in, nobody should have to make that choice. 

Nationwide Produce pride themselves on offering an abundance of fresh fruit and vegetables making them a one stop shop for most markets and food service businesses. As much as the Nationwide team order only what is necessary, occasionally there is food waste. This is something the Nationwide team are working hard to redirect. In order to progress towards a zero-food waste to landfill country, we all need to work hard to find new solutions. 

Nationwide Produce’s solution is to work with a select few charities to provide surplus food to make free, nutritious meals for those in need of support.

The long-standing issue of food poverty and deprivation has only been highlighted further by the Covid-19 pandemic. By providing nutritious surplus food from Nationwide Produce, distributed by the City Harvest London fleet at New Spitalfields Market, City Harvest enables deprived communities to access quality, healthy food they otherwise would not be able to afford. This ensures they are not only surviving, but thriving. 

David Carter, Chief Executive of City Harvest London, said, “City Harvest’s partnership with Nationwide Produce enables us to reach many more people in need. This is especially important at a time where food poverty has spiked due to the legacy of the pandemic and ongoing challenges for so many who are unable to afford food to feed their families.

City Harvest’s sustainable network across the capital provides nutritious food for over 1 million meals a month to 350+ charity partners. Our drivers have relationships with all their charities on their routes, enabling them to support their communities with a reliable source of food and a friendly face when times are hard. With partners such as Nationwide Produce we are able to increase that reach and ensure no good food is wasted and we are actively playing our part to reduce the impact on the planet.”

Read more about our latest sponsorships and charity work here.