How we're tackling food waste
- 8 hours ago
- 2 min read
Catching Lives provides breakfast and lunch every day for people who are homeless. These meals ensure our clients have access to nutritious, freshly-cooked dishes to support their physical and mental wellbeing. As well as tackling hunger, we are committed to making sure that good food doesn't go to waste.
We work closely with other local organisations within the Canterbury community to make the most of every donation we receive. Thanks to the generosity of local supporters, we sometimes find ourselves with more of an item than we can use before it expires. In these cases, we make sure the food goes where it's needed most.
Our key partners are Canterbury Food Bank, the Community Larder at All Saints and The Hub Cafe and Community Fridge at the Canterbury Baptist Church. By sharing surplus food and essential supplies, we help ensure that nothing usable is thrown away, and more people across the community can benefit.
We source fresh ingredients like meat and vegetables from FareShare (now known as Felix), a UK-wide charity dedicated to tackling food waste. They collect surplus food from supermarkets and suppliers, redistributing it to charities like ours at a low cost, so it can be turned into nutritious meals.
In 2025, our volunteers served 13,898 meals for people who are homeless. We distributed 5.54 tonnes of food and drink through FareShare, ensuring surplus food is reaching those who need it the most.
We are also working within the centre to ensure we are more sustainable and have access to local, fresh ingredients. With the support of Occupational Therapy students on placement, our clients have transformed our garden into a Kitchen Garden - a functional and welcoming space, growing different herbs and vegetables that can be used in our kitchen!
By getting clients involved with each part of the process, they can learn different new skills in the garden, gain the mental wellbeing benefits from being outside, and they have the satisfaction of seeing an evolving project that feels a part of something bigger.
Thank you to the Amity Allotment Fund for funding the Kitchen Garden Project to develop our outdoor space.
