JOIN OUR FARM RESCUE SCHEME
YOUR SURPLUS CAN HELP FEED PEOPLE IN NEED
London is in the midst of a hunger crisis. 1 in 4 working parents in the capital struggle to afford to feed their families on a regular basis. 1 in 7 have less than £3 a day for food after paying their bills.
DEFRA report around 330,000 tonnes of edible food is either wasted or fed to animals each year before leaving farms. Whether you are looking for ways to better use or qualify for SFIs, engage your local community with the land, or just thin out some crop - we’d love to hear from you.
Got food going to waste? Get in touch.
We've been working in the primary sector since 2023, mobilising over 2,200 volunteers to date. Since then we've gleaned nearly 200 tonnes of plums, apples and pears and redistributed this fresh and nutritious fruit to Londoners in need. We even won the Waste Not Want Not award for it at the 2024 Grocer Awards.
But we want to do more. Thanks to support from Defra, we are expanding our capacity to rescue from the primary sector and are seeking new producers to partner with.
FAQs
How does the Defra funding support the Farm Rescue scheme?
The Felix Project is delighted to have been awarded funding from Defra, after a successful joint bid with FareShare to the "Tackling Food Surplus at the Farm Gate" fund. This funding is helping us grow our Farm Rescue scheme, allowing us to rescue more surplus produce that would otherwise go to waste.
The funding helps us cover essential costs, from crates and picking buckets to wellie boots and transport. While we don’t pay for the produce or the pickers, the funding enables us to cover the logistics of harvesting and hauling food from farms to our London depots. The fund ensures that donating surplus food doesn’t cost farmers anything.
How does it work?
We’ll organise a team of trained volunteers to harvest any surplus fruit or vegetables you’d like to donate. A dedicated member of The Felix Project team will coordinate with you to agree on timings and any specific needs, always ensuring your land is treated with care and respect.
Once harvested, your produce will be transported by our Felix vans to one of our London depots. There, it’s sorted and distributed to community organisations, charities, and food support services across the city.
Will it cost me anything to donate?
No. The Felix Project covers volunteer coordination, harvesting, and transport.
(Also, we do not and will not charge the community organisations we deliver to – we are funded solely by donations.)
Who are the volunteers? Are they trained?
Our volunteers are carefully briefed and supported by trained coordinators. They’re respectful of your land and follow health and safety protocols. Our Farm Rescue coordinators will carry out a full risk assessment of the site, and we hold our own Public Liability Insurance.
What if I’m not sure my produce is suitable?
No problem, just get in touch! We’re happy to talk it through, and if this isn’t the right fit, we may still be able to collect it via other donation routes.
Which charities receive the produce we give you?
By working with us, you’re not just supporting The Felix Project. You’re helping local community organisations across London that support some of the most vulnerable people in the capital. All of the community organisations we deliver to (over 1,200!) are helping those at the greatest risk of food poverty. Some provide cooking lessons to children or provide hot meals for the homeless. Others cook meals for the elderly or support those recovering form substance abuse.
WHY FELIX?
The Felix Project is London’s largest food redistribution charity. Our vision is a London where good food is never wasted, and no one goes hungry. We work with the food industry to rescue high-quality surplus food, which is then redistributed to over 1,200 community organisations. Food banks, homeless shelters and primary schools are just a few examples of the organisations we work with, all of whom work within communities across London to feed people experiencing hunger.
We accept one-off and regular donations including fresh and frozen food, unpicked produce and that with super-short shelf-life. In truth, we pick up almost anything. Our fleet of over 65 refrigerated vans drive seven-days a week, meaning we have the scale to flex to your requirements. Our 15,000-strong team of employees and volunteers picking, sorting and packing can deliver your surplus food back out to the communities in a matter of hours/days.