‘Free-food fridge’ to open doors in Angus

AN Angus community group will offer the county’s first “free-food fridge” when it opens in October.

Brechin Community Pantry will move into a revamped Swan Street location to offer emergency food packages and a children’s clothing bank. There are also plans to expand its remit into IT skills, debt counselling and cooking classes.

A free-food fridge will be available for donations and the collection of fresh, unwanted food items.

Spokeswoman Bridget Gillies said: “We are really looking forward to moving into our new base in Brechin and hope that we can be more accessible to the community.

“We also want to turn away from the perception of what a foodbank is by making it open to all regardless of status. We want to recognise that anyone can drop into food poverty or go hungry, by offering emergency food supplies without referral and the availability of a free-food fridge.”

The idea is based on the success of several other community fridges across the UK in such places as Brixton, Somerset and Bristol where individual donors or businesses hand in unused, in-date bread, fruit and vegetables.

“Someone might have overbought on their shopping and instead of throwing food out, they can donate quickly to the free-food fridge,” Bridget added. “The fridge will be open for everyone to put in and take out, with no questions asked.”