This month sees the start of a brand new local initiative which it’s hoped will reduce food waste in our village.
On Wednesday 6th April Carol Jaggers and Gwen Eyre are opening a ‘community fridge’ in St Peter’s Rooms called ‘The Ruddington Pantry’. The aim of a community fridge is to rescue good quality, surplus food, free of charge from local food retailers, gardeners and restaurants. Individuals are also encouraged to donate to the fridge by dropping off any items from their cupboards they won’t be able to make use of before they go off or reach a ‘best before’ date. The pantry will then be open twice a week for anyone to take items which they feel they can make us of.
Although a community fridge can be of help to someone struggling with food poverty it’s very different to a food bank. “The emphasis is on building community ties and reducing waste with every member of the community welcome to get involved by either giving to or taking items from the fridge as often as they like” explains Carol. “This project has been a time in the planning with the two of us first meeting about a year ago to talk about issues around food waste and food stability. We are both supporters of the NG11 Foodbank but we felt there was a gap in provision and we needed a project here in the village that had no barriers on who could use it.”
Fortunately, shortly after this first meeting between the duo, Co-op announced a £500,000 partnership with the Hubbub fridge network to launch 100 new community fridges around the country increasing provision from 150 to 250. Ruddington’s will actually be their first one in Nottinghamshire.
Ruddington Co-op Member Pioneer Gwen says: “We felt that this was exactly what was needed and we were delighted to obtain one of these grants and also additional funding from Nottinghamshire County Council. Courtesy of Ruddington Parish Council, the fridge will be located at St Peter’s Rooms, in the heart of our village, conveniently near local shops and businesses, and accessible to as many people as possible.”
She adds: “We hope to see lots of people coming in to see how it works over the coming weeks. We would also love to hear from you if you are interested in volunteering. This wouldn’t have to be every week, or even at the specific opening times, as there is lots to get involved with. But the more people who can help the more it will feel like a truly ‘community’ project.”
You can make contact by emailing Gwen.Eyre@coop.co.uk if you’d like to volunteer, or just find out more. If you’re on Facebook you can also request to join The Ruddington Pantry group >>HERE<<.
Opening times for ‘The Ruddington Pantry’ in St Peter’s Rooms will be Wednesdays 12.15-1.30pm and Sundays 4.15-5.30pm from Wednesday April 6th 2022 onwards.
