Foundation team up with city charity to offer festive meals

By Marc Astley
16/12/22

Hundreds of people will enjoy a hearty lunch this Christmas, thanks to a collaboration between the Exeter Chiefs Foundation and a city food charity.

Thousands of pounds have been set aside by the foundation’s trustees to pay for the festive feasts.

And it is estimated that, as a result of the partnership with Exeter Food Action, more than 1,000 meals will have been served on the big day

Exeter Chiefs Foundation trustees Tony Rowe OBE and Marc Astley visited EFA’s base on Marsh Barton to find out how the money would be spent.

Exeter Food Action rescues excess food from shops and suppliers, and redistributes it to organisations that support people in need in Devon.

But the organisation's coordinator, Elizabeth Butland, explained there was a growing concern that leftover stock might be in short supply this year as shoppers, and supermarkets, tighten their belts.

At a recent meeting of the foundation, trustees agreed to use a pot of undesignated money to help ease the burden on anyone struggling this Christmas.

Mr Rowe said: “As a charity our mission is to improve the lives of the people in our community and we know that this Christmas many families will face a stark choice between eating and heating.

“It’s heartbreaking to think that what should be a day of celebration will be a miserable experience for those most affected by the cost of living crisis. Although we normally fund tangible projects such as buildings and vehicles, we felt strongly that some of the money donated to us this year should be used to support a food charity.

“Exeter Food Action have risen to the occasion and been incredibly proactive in making the initiative work at relatively short notice.”

Exeter Food Action grew out of Devon and Cornwall Food Action, and was formerly known as DCFA Exeter.

The service is free, and supported entirely by grants and donations.

Mrs Butland said: “The food we usually rescue might have been disposed of because it has a short date left on it, has damaged packaging, or might simply be surplus to requirements.

“The two issues we have in the run up to Christmas are that any surplus festive stock will be donated to us far too late for it to reach our users in time for December 25 and we simply don’t know what we are going to get, which makes planning almost impossible. By working with the Exeter Chiefs Foundation we can make sure that the right food reaches the right people at the right time. This is an incredibly generous gift, and we are grateful for the opportunity to make a difference to so many people this Christmas.”

Celebrity chef Michael Caines has been helping to coordinate the project.

He said: “I have been liaising with local suppliers to source the large quantities of food we need and they have all been incredibly supportive. I’m so pleased that the foundation has been able to make this happen.”

The foundation is also working with Westward, which provides affordable homes to buy and rent in Devon, to supply its residents with supermarket food vouchers.