A London charity earmarked to be a major beneficiary of The Independent’s On the Breadline Christmas appeal has received a “substantial personal donation” from His Majesty The King to help people struggling with the cost of living crisis.
The Felix Project, funded by this paper as part of our £10m award-winning Help the Hungry campaign during the pandemic and now the capital’s biggest surplus food distributor, today entered into “a perfectly chilled partnership” with King Charles and The Prince of Wales Charitable Fund to help thousands of UK households grappling with food insecurity.
The Prince of Wales Charitable Fund will establish a £1m starting fund that “includes a substantial personal donation” from King Charles.
The money will be used to fund The Felix Project and supply fridges and freezers to hundreds of charities in London and the rest of the UK, enabling them to rescue and store more fresh and frozen food.
Scores of London charities set to benefit will be identified by The Felix Project, while beneficiary charities across the rest of the UK will be identified by The Trussell Trust, British Asian Trust and FareShare, another beneficiary of our On the Breadline appeal in partnership with Comic Relief and The Childhood Trust.
Charlotte Hill, CEO of The Felix Project, said: “At Christmas we see a huge increase in surplus food donations, yet in previous years we have had to turn down tens of thousands of kilograms of food. We knew freezing food would be a good solution.
“Now, thanks to this incredible donation from His Majesty The King and a range of funders, we will not only be able to freeze and store vast quantities of food, we will be protected when food supplies are low due to seasonal dips and can create a long-lasting infrastructure for our community partners, that will help people for years to come.”
Baroness Louise Casey, who helped spearhead this initiative, said: “The need for food banks is a cause of national shame but many people would go hungry without them.
“The cost of living has created real and enduring hardship for too many people. This action will mean some foodbanks and charities across the UK will be able to store more fresh food and reduce waste in the winter months ahead.”
The initiative will also leave an environmental legacy. Food production is responsible for around a third of the planet’s greenhouse gas emissions. Additionally, once in landfill, food produces methane, which contributes to rising global temperatures.
Our Cost of Living Christmas Appeal, On the Breadline, has partnered with Comic Relief and The Childhood Trust, a charity that helps children in poverty in London.
Donations made into our partnership with The Childhood Trust will be given out in grants to organisations that help children in poverty in London.
Donations made into our partnership with Comic Relief will go to organisations across the UK (including London) helping people on the breadline of all ages cope with the cost of living.
How you can help
To help children affected by the cost-of-living crisis who live in London, donate here.
To help children and communities affected by the cost-of-living crisis wherever they live in the UK, donate here.
