Business leaders visit The Felix Project to explore how they can help tackle food insecurity
Business leaders visit The Felix Project to explore how they can help tackle food insecurity
Business leaders convene at The Felix Project in Poplar, London to learn about food insecurity in the UK and explore ways to address the challenges faced by those who experience it.
Business in the Community (BITC) has today brought senior business leaders to The Felix Project in Poplar, London to understand how businesses can help address high rates of food insecurity in the UK and how they can support those experiencing food insecurity.
Part of BITC’s flagship The King’s Seeing is Believing programme, the visit was attended by senior business leaders from the Department of Business and Trade, Atos, BNP Paribas, Drax, Itsu, Partridges of Sloane Square, Schroders, Simplyhealth and Virgin Money.
Under the leadership of Paul Drechsler CBE, Lead Non-Executive Board Member at the Department for Business and Trade and Trustee of The Felix Project, business leaders came together to understand the effects of food insecurity and the important work of organisations like The Felix Project in supporting those experiencing it.
The visit comes as the most recent data shows that in 2022/23, one in 10 people in the UK, and nearly two in 10 children, were living in food insecurity.[2] In addition, low-income groups and those who have disabilities are at a disproportionately high risk of household food insecurity and its potential negative impacts.[3] Furthermore, the UK wastes 6.4 million tonnes of edible food every year.[4] The Felix Project, meanwhile, redistributed 15,864 tonnes of food, equivalent to 38 million meals, to over 1,200 organisations across London in 2024.[5]
During the visit, business leaders heard from representatives from the following community organisations and businesses:
- The Felix Project: London’s largest food redistribution charity, dedicated to rescuing surplus food from the food industry and delivering it to over 1,200 community organisations across London. It aims to fight food waste and hunger by ensuring that vulnerable people, including children, older adults and those experiencing homelessness receive good, nutritious food. In 2024, The Felix Project delivered 38 million meals and saved almost 16,000 tonnes of food from waste.
- The Black Prince Trust: a community hub in Lambeth, using sport, education and wellbeing activities to drive positive social change. It works in partnership with The Felix Project to run a Community Fridge, redistributing surplus food twice a week and providing up to 2,880 meals a month. The Black Prince Trust hosts a training kitchen with Share Community, where adults with disabilities gain hospitality skills, preparing and distributing around 700 free meals a month to residents in need.
- Morgan Stanley: business leaders heard about how Morgan Stanley partners with and supports The Felix Project, how the partnership has helped employee engagement internally and how it has benefitted Morgan Stanley in general.
Paul Drechsler CBE, Lead Non-Executive Board Member at the Department for Business and Trade and Trustee of The Felix Project, said:
“The fact that there is an increasing rate of food insecurity across the UK while there is still so much food going to waste around the country is shocking. Exacerbated by the rise in energy and food prices due to inflation, this leads some households to have to choose between heating their homes or putting food on the table. Organisations like The Felix Project carry out vital work to support in saving surplus food from being wasted and redistributing it to those who need it most. The King’s Seeing is Believing visit to The Felix Project not only shed light on the work of this incredible organisation, but also the support that businesses can give and the significant impact they can make to important organisations like this.”
Kieran Harding, Acting CEO of Business in the Community, said:
“The King’s Seeing Believing visits are a testament to the power of private, public and voluntary sector collaboration to understand the challenges facing communities and come up with impactful, long-term solutions to address them. Today’s visit to The Felix Project was inspirational, bringing to light the challenges leading to food insecurity and showcasing the amazing work of organisations that are working to support those who are struggling to afford food, as well as how businesses can support them to do this work. I hope that the visit will inspire the business leaders in attendance to do more to address food insecurity and support organisations already doing impressive work on the ground to tackle these issues.”
The King’s Seeing is Believing programme was established by the then Prince of Wales in 1990. The programme, supported by Salesforce and Linklaters LLP, was born from a simple but powerful belief that the best way to close the gap between the boardroom and the community was to take business leaders out to the communities and, through the power of experiential learning, to inspire and challenge participants. The visits are designed to encourage business leaders to think strategically about the implications for their own businesses and the practical actions that can be taken in response, leading to meaningful and sustained impact for both businesses and communities. To date, over 25,000 business leaders have taken part in the King’s Seeing is Believing programme which has led to various initiatives being set up including Career Ready, Ban the Box and mentoring circles in collaboration with the Department for Work and Pensions.
ENDS
Notes to editor
- Photos of the visit are available upon request.
- House of Commons: Food poverty: Households, food banks and free school meals – House of Commons Library.
- UK Government: United Kingdom Food Security Report 2024: Theme 4: Food Security at Household Level – GOV.UK.
- Waste Managed: Food Waste Statistics – 2024.
- The Felix Project: our impact.
For further information, please contact Polly Dacam, Press Officer, on 020 7566 6638.