A partnership is helping families this summer
One million tins of baked beans will be produced for people facing food insecurity this summer through a partnership between Princes, Waitrose, Alliance Food Sourcing (AFS) and Felix. The collaboration will see cans of Branston Baked Beans distributed through Felix’s network of more than 8,000 community organisations, schools, food banks and community kitchens, providing thousands of meals for people who need them most.
Inspired by the legacy of The King’s Coronation Food Project, the project forms part of the wider work of Alliance Food Sourcing (AFS), a coalition that brings together leading UK food businesses to unlock surplus food and factory capabilities and turn it into meals for charities. Unlike traditional food redistribution programmes that rely solely on surplus items, the donation of baked beans has brought together manufacturing, retail and charity partners to start donating the British store cupboard staple over the coming months.
By unlocking surplus factory capacity and supply-chain resources, the partnership has created a new way of getting more nutritious food to communities facing hunger. Princes is optimising its facilities to produce additional volumes of beans during quieter periods throughout the year.
The move represents a shift in how the food industry addresses food insecurity, the partners said. With standard retail surplus donations being inconsistent, they added that “the project gives a vital boost to the food supplies distributed by charities”.
Waitrose is also currently trialling similar initiatives with its pasta supplier, Daybreak, and its fresh fruit supplier, Primafruit. Combined, the three initiatives are on track to divert the equivalent of more than 1.9 million meals to Felix, the UK’s largest food rescue charity formerly known as The Felix Project and FareShare, by the end of the year.
David McDiarmid, corporate relations director at Princes Group, said: “Baked beans have been a cornerstone of the British kitchen for decades thanks to their versatility and long shelf life. We are delighted that our first successful venture with Alliance Food Sourcing is on Branston Baked Beans, as they provide an accessible and nutritious meal option, with one can containing over 24 grams of fibre.
“We have partnered with FareShare for over a decade and donations of stock is a matter of routine and something all our colleagues are passionate about, so we are proud to go ’beyond surplus’ food and instead use our manufacturing capability to actively produce food for people who need it.”
Marija Rompani, director of ethics and sustainability at Waitrose, said: “This isn’t just about donating surplus food; it’s about exploring how we can work closely with our suppliers to rewrite the rules in our supply chain and unlock surplus that can make a real difference to our communities.”
Nicky Robinson, director of Alliance Food Sourcing, said: “We’re delighted to see Waitrose, Princes, Daybreak and Primafruit showing what can be achieved by working together.
“By adapting their supply chains, food businesses can redirect factory capacity or rescue edible food to help tackle UK hunger. Innovations like these mean millions more meals are already reaching people who need them – often through relatively simple changes.”
Charlotte Hill OBE, CEO of Felix, said: “Unfortunately the demand for food amongst the charities and organisations Felix supplies keeps rising.
“That is why projects like this are vital, it not only shows what partnerships and innovative thinking can achieve, it ensures Felix, which is the new name for merged charities FareShare and The Felix Project, receives a steady supply of a much sought-after family favourite.”
