Nestlé Cereals celebrates one year of alliance with food charity FareShare

Nestlé Cereals has announced a new charitable milestone, having redistributed over 850,000 portions from 75,000 boxes of breakfast cereal in one year through its partnership with the UK’s biggest food charity, FareShare.

Over the course of July and August, the business provided 50,000 boxes that will go to the Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) Alliance via FareShare. The HAF Alliance is a new coalition of 16 not-for-profits - including FareShare – formed to support the government’s £220m HAF programme, which is providing free holiday clubs, food and activities to the UK’s most disadvantaged children during the Summer holidays this year.

Nestlé Cereals has been supporting FareShare for one year – beginning during the pandemic in 2020 - regularly redistributing products to vulnerable people, two thirds of which are children and families whom are at risk of hunger and may be struggling with unemployment, low income, debt, homelessness, family break up, dependency or other issues.

FareShare is the UK’s largest food redistribution charity, with more than 30 warehouses across the UK. It takes food from the food industry that can’t be sold in shops, either because of packaging errors, a short shelf life or overproduction. Working with a network of more than 10,500 charities, FareShare fights hunger and food waste by distributing surplus good-to-eat food.

Gharry Eccles, Vice President UK & Oceania, Cereal Partners Worldwide (Nestlé & General Mills), said: “At Nestlé Cereals, we strive to create a positive impact on people’s lives, and believe this doesn’t stop at the breakfast table. We are delighted to have reached this milestone donation figure, which is helping support people in need and our local communities across the UK.

“By redistributing our products, it also helps manage our waste, helping ensure as much of our food as possible is going to good use rather than being wasted. We know that having access to a nutritious breakfast plays a huge part in people’s long-term health and happiness and are happy to be playing a part in ensuring this.”

Lindsay Boswell, CEO, FareShare, commented that it has been excellent to partner with Nestlé Cereals over the course of the year to help vulnerable families and individuals access much needed food in the morning.

“This last year has been challenging for many families in the UK who have been impacted by the pandemic, and school holidays can be particularly difficult because of the increased costs of food and childcare, reduced incomes and the lack of free healthy school meals. The latest donation to the HAF Alliance will get much needed food onto the plates of the most vulnerable this summer, and we look forward to continuing to work together,” Boswell said.

In addition to product donations, as part of its commitment to helping local communities, Nestlé Cereals also has plans to implement a new, internal volunteering programme that will see staff support FareShare in their warehouses.