FareShare Receive IGD Awards For Work In Food Waste

Two IGD Awards, the grocery industry’s equivalent to the ‘Oscars’, have been awarded to food distribution charity, FareShare, for their work in tackling food waste.

Together with Tesco, it won the Sustainable Futures Award for its UK-wide programme to redistribute surplus food from the retailer’s stores to people in need. FareShare’s Kris Gibbon-Walsh, who leads the team that delivers the FareShare FoodCloud programme, also scooped the Leading Light Award.

Tesco was recognised by the IGD Awards for embedding sustainability into its business and proactively engaging its customers, to inspire positive change in food waste. Since FareShare FoodCloud launched earlier this year, the scheme has already delivered an incredible 1.4m meals to more than 2,800 UK charities and community groups.

FareShare’s Kris Gibon-Walsh, who initiated the FareShare FoodCloud programme from scratch only last year, was also recognised by the awards for his strong vision and sense of innovation.

David Wilkinson, Human Resources Director at Premier Foods, one of the judges for the Leading Light Award, commented:

“Kris stood out to us [for] his outstanding delivery, strong drive for results and fantastic vision of what FareShare can become. There has been a significant commercial impact as a result of [the FareShare FoodCloud] programme, with evidence that sustainable growth can be achieved in the future.”

FareShare FoodCloud has already helped Tesco to redistribute more than 1.4 million meals of surplus from its stores to frontline charities across the UK.

Lindsay Boswell, FareShare CEO, said:

“We are chuffed to bits that FareShare’s work to tackle food waste was recognised by the IGD Awards. FareShare FoodCloud has already helped Tesco to redistribute more than 1.4 million meals of surplus from its stores to frontline charities across the UK, which is incredible, and we’re so proud that Kris Gibbon-Walsh, who leads that programme for FareShare, was also recognised with the Leading Light Award. We hope this will raise the profile of charity redistribution, and encourage more retailers and manufacturers to use their surplus to feed people in need.”

The FareShare FoodCloud scheme enables stores to redistribute surplus food that is unsold at the end of the day to local charities, free of charge – reducing waste and benefitting local communities. It is a three-way partnership between FareShare, FoodCloud and Tesco, combining innovative technology with on-the-ground support, to make it a safe and easy way to redistribute food to people in need.

Charities or community groups that use food to support people in need can register for the scheme at www.fareshare.org.uk/fareshare-foodcloud