Throughout the summer, we are saying a big ‘thank you’ to the companies which supply us with the food we redistribute to our community food members (over 300 charities and community groups across Greater Manchester). This time, we’re shining the spotlight on Kellanova.
It goes without saying that it makes our employees feel good about working for a company that does good and gives back to its local community. Combine this with the opportunity to volunteer at FareShare and get to see firsthand the important work that FareShare does and how our contributions aid their efforts – Kellanova
Our relationship with Kellanova dates back 15 years – the company told us how that first donation came about; “We first started donating products to FareShare Greater Manchester in 2009 when a colleague from the supply chain team (logistics) commented on edible food that was getting written off (sold off for animal feed). We created a new process to separate edible from inedible and started donating it to FareShare Greater Manchester. By doing this it helps us support local communities and has created a lasting partnership with FareShare.”
During the last 15 years, Kellanova has donated an amazing 250 tonnes of products to FareShare Greater Manchester. When you consider the fact that cereals are relatively light in comparison to other foodstuffs, that adds up to a colossal amount of food.
Helping the community
We asked Kellanova what the key benefits are that they’ve experienced from donating surplus food in this way. Their response was; “It goes without saying that our key objective is to sell all the products we make but occasionally there are times when that’s not possible, so donating to FareShare is the best alternative. We know that our breakfast cereals are a staple for most households and they’re a welcome addition for the school breakfast clubs and food banks who feed people in need”.
Cereals and other breakfast items are very much in demand with the community food members we serve especially school breakfast clubs, food banks and community pantries. L’Chaim is one of the groups which benefits from the Kellanova food donations made, Dubby Klyne from L’Chaim Foodbank says they are hugely important:
The cereals provided by Kellanova via FareShare have played a huge part in our ability to provide emergency food parcels to thousands of recipients in the Greater Manchester area over the last few years. Since the end of Covid, food donations have comparatively dwindled to a trickle and combined with a need that has grown exponentially in the same period it has been increasingly difficult for organisations like L’Chaim Foodbank to provide the basic three meals to families who are most in need. The cereal donations from Kellanova meant that for a long period of time, we didn’t have to worry about being able to provide at least one of those meals every day. – Dubby Klyne, L’Chaim Foodbank
Other benefits
In addition to ‘doing the right thing’ with regards to surplus edible food, there are other benefits too, with regards to sustainability. Alexander Beck, Social Impact & Sustainability Advisor for Kellanova, says “we have ambitious global sustainability goals including commitments on reducing food waste so the donations we make to FareShare contribute to that.”
Alexander also commented that the relationship has been beneficial to Kellanova employees as well; “Employees have always been fully supportive of the decision. Many people have also taken the opportunity to go and volunteer at FareShare Greater Manchester too and always come back saying how shocked they are about the amount of variety of products that have been donated. I think, when you see it all filling the warehouse, it really makes you stand back and think that if it hadn’t been donated then it would have gone to waste which would have been unforgivable really”.
Advice for other food producers
Finally, we asked Alexander what advice he would have for any other food manufacturers or suppliers who might be considering donating their surplus edible food to us?
“I would recommend donating to FareShare Greater Manchester as it makes such a difference to people in need in the region. It might involve creating new processes and overcoming a few challenges along the way but anything is possible with the mindset to create positive changes for people and planet.
Thank you to Kellanova for your continued support for FareShare Greater Manchester!
