Food redistribution warehouse opens in east London

A food redistribution hub that aims to deliver up to 10 tonnes of food to charities and food banks each week has opened in east London.

The Big Heart Food Hub in Barking will support more than 20 local organisations that work directly with residents struggling with the cost of living.

Most of the food will be unsold items that would otherwise have gone to waste, and will feed an estimated 7,000 residents each week.

Nathan Grady, charity food coordinator, said: "We are statistically the poorest borough in London and we recognise that there's a big need. People are missing meals - children are missing meals."

'A stepping stone'

The hub is a partnership between Barking and Dagenham Council, The Kindness Offensive, Food for All, Felix, City Harvest and Kingsley Hall.

Felix, a food redistribution charity, collects surplus food from shops and other providers so that it is not thrown away or incinerated.

It is given to local organisations, food banks, soup kitchens and schools, said David Goodfellow, one of the managers at Big Heart and a founder of The Kindness Offensive.

"They are the ones who are on the front line and they don't have the resources to be able to feed all the people that are coming to their doors," he said.

"We are a stepping stone, a middle ground between some of the big suppliers and some of the community-facing groups, to give them the supplies that they need.

"There's a lot of people who are hungry."

Sana Sajid is one of the people who will be receiving food from the Big Heart Food Hub to redistribute.

She and her husband run a food club at Darul Ummah Goresbrook community centre for people that are struggling financially.

"If we can help them with food, it means that they will have more money to pay their bills," she said. "It makes a big difference."

According to the Trust for London, external, food insecurity has increased by 23% from 2022/23 to 2024/25.

Saima Ashraf, deputy leader of Barking and Dagenham Council, said the focus was on delivering "surplus good food" through a partnership approach.

"It's sad that we have to use food banks, however it is also sad that a lot of food is being thrown away. Surplus good food - not rotten food - is going to residents and families that deserve it," she said.

The partnership hopes that in the future, Big Heart will also offer volunteering programmes, training and development opportunities.

"We don't want it just to be food distribution," said Nathan Grady, charity food coordinator.

He said: "We want to create jobs out of it and teach people how to cook with the food that they get.

"So when they come to a food bank they're not like: 'What's the celeriac? What do I do with it?'"

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