Huge food share centre to open up in Milton Keynes

Each year FareShare currently redistributes more than 20,000 tonnes of surplus food donated by companies to people in need via over 10,000 charities and community groups across the UK.

Yet the charity estimates this impressive figure is only seven per cent of all surplus foodstuffs within the national supply chain.

At the same time, one in eight people in the UK are still struggling to afford food.

The new centre will be at Bletchley's Dawson Road and is in response to "rising need", says the charity.

The expansion into Milton Keynes has been funded by Asda and FareShare has chosen partner charity SOFEA to manage the operation.

SOFEA works with young people to build their employability while at the same time provides nutritious food for people in need.

A FareShare spokesman said: "What FareShare and SOFEA are doing for communities is really brilliant. SOFEA first launched in partnership with FareShare five years ago when they opened FareShare’s Thames Valley branch, and it has so far proved really successful in that region.

"They’ve already saved 1,000 tonnes of surplus food from waste whilst also supporting 250 disadvantaged young people through education programmes."