Food-waste rescue wins coveted national award
In partnership with Ukharvest and Biffa, West Sussex County Council (WSCC) has won a coveted National Recycling Award for its Community Food Waste Prevention and Rescue programme.
The partnership won in the Food Waste Initiative category and received praise from the expert judging panel drawn from across the recycling sector.
The programme takes rescued food from suppliers that would otherwise have gone to waste and redistributes it to residents via a series of Community Food Hubs.
Following a successful six month pilot in trial areas, the Community Food Waste programme was extended until April 2024 across all districts and boroughs within the county.
The hubs are open to all residents and mean residents can take advantage of the surplus food available whilst also receiving food waste prevention hints and tips.
Councillor Deborah Urquhart, deputy leader and cabinet member for environment and climate change, said: “This award is a tremendous achievement and testament to our unique work with partners and waste volunteers who help to run these hub events.
“It not only makes good use of surplus food rescue but helps to reduce the amount of edible food going to waste across the whole county.”
Sarah Morison, Partnerships for Ukharvest, said: “We are so thrilled that our closing working partnership with WSCC and Biffa has been recognised by these awards.
“Having support from the council to supercharge our Community Food Hubs has allowed so many more people across West Sussex to access our surplus food and wraparound support.”
Chris Hampson, Biffa's West Sussex general manager, said: “Preventing perfectly good food and other produce from going to waste is a cornerstone of our sustainability strategy.
“It’s a lifeline for many families in today's cost-of-living crisis. It is better for the environment as redistributing surplus food instead of sending it to waste helps reduce carbon emissions.”
For more information on the Food waste prevention and rescue programme, go to www.westsussex.gov.uk/ ukharvest