Marks & Spencer launched a new nationwide surplus food redistribution scheme which will connect all its stores with local food charities and accelerate M&S towards its Plan A target of reducing food waste by 20% by 2020.
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Food charities keen to participate in the scheme can register online from October 12. In the initial launch phase, 150 of M&S’s biggest stores will be ready to redistribute surplus food by December, followed by the roll out to all M&S’s owned stores by Spring 2016.
Redistributed food will include products nearing their expiry date including fruit, vegetables, bread, cakes and groceries, and will vary according to charity need.
M&S is working in partnership with Neighbourly, the social network for social good, to deliver the scheme through Neighbourly’s website, which will provide a simple process for food charities to register and receive food from their local store.
The site will enable M&S to centrally monitor what products are resulting in surplus and how this can be reduced. M&S will be the first major retailer to provide live updates on the number of tonnes of surplus food redistributed.
Managing the nationwide scheme through a single platform also removes some of the logistical barriers to redistribution, including ensuring that all those registered have the correct charity and food hygiene credentials in place.
The launch follows a series of trials and pilots in 45 stores aimed at finding the most effective way of redistributing surplus food to ensure it is put to the best possible use.
The scheme with Neighbourly was trialled in six stores in the Bristol and Bath area, supporting a number of local food charities including the Bristol North West Food Bank, which supports those in the local community going through periods of crisis, and the Upper Horfield Community Trust, which supports local families with meals from its Community Cafe.
Since April, the six stores have redistributed nearly 4 tonnes of surplus food and charity collections are now occurring on a daily basis. ■