Boris tackles food waste

I think I will soon have to produce a further 100 achievements of the Mayor of London Boris Johnson. One recent initiative which caught my attention is a scheme to divert 300 tons of perfectly good food from being sent into landfill - instead it will be provided to the homeless. This will be made possoble by a grant of £362,000 from the London Waste and Recycling Board to the charity FairShare.

James Cleverly, Chairman of the LWARB, says:

‘It is absurd that 8.3 million tons of perfectly edible food is chucked away in the UK each year. We are supporting an excellent charity to link up businesses who want to do the right thing with their excess food, with those who will most benefit. Not only will this mean that 300 tons each year of surplus food will be used by those who need it, rather than being dumped in landfill, but it will also create valuable job and volunteering opportunities for Londoners. This is part of the Board's vision to cut the amount of rubbish generated in the capital.'

Tony Lowe, CEO of FareShare says:

"This is an important decision. The provision of this grant by London Waste and Recycling Board to FareShare is a clear statement that they support FareShare’s aims of ensuring that where food cannot be sold but can be eaten it should be. By doing this not only will good food no longer be destroyed but thousands more vulnerable people across London will have regular access to quality food and carbon emissions will be reduced."

"In 2008/09, the food redistributed by FareShare contributed towards more than 7.4 million meals. Every day an average of 29,000 people benefit from the service FareShare provides, and this will be 6,240 more because of this new depot. As well as redistributing food, FareShare provides a programme of education and vocational training opportunities – the Eat Well Live Well programme. This redistribution of food helped businesses reduce carbon emissions by 13,950 tons in 2008/09."