Blandford’s ‘Community Fridge’ opened on Wednesday, May 19, with the support of environmental charity Hubbub UK in a growing effort to tackle food waste.
The fridge is at Blandford Youth & Community Centre (next to the leisure centre), and will be open in the first instance on Wednesday mornings between 9am and 11am, for anyone to help themselves to quality food from Tesco that would otherwise be wasted. Everyone is welcome.
The aim is to empower communities to reduce food waste – a big issue in the UK where the average household throws away £700-worth of food a year at a time when four million people are living in food poverty.
Most food waste in the UK is avoidable, since the food could have been eaten had it been better managed. The fridge, for which funding has come from Dorset Council and Blandford Forum Town Council, with commitments from the Georgian Fayre, the Carnival Committee and Sandisons Ltd (accountancy firm), is one of a growing number operating across the UK where there are now more than 50 projects running.
Work on the Blandford project started in September 2020 and online meetings have been held since then with volunteers and representatives from Blandford Forum Town
Council, the Blandford Group Practice, Blandford Youth & Community Centre and Public Health Dorset. To find out more about Blandford Community Fridge, donate or volunteer, see the Facebook page or email Blandford communityfridge@outlook.com.
Hubbub set up the world’s community Friday Network in 2017 and provides free advice and support to community fridge organisers, enabling communities to share their experiences and learn from each other.
See hubbub.org.uk/communityfridgenetwork.
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