FoodCycle, the charity that aims to make food poverty, loneliness and food waste a thing of the past for every community, is in urgent need of volunteers as it opens its doors in Hull. Launching on 26th May at Marfleet Community Centre supported by Timebank Hull and East Riding, the weekly free meal will provide great food and conversation every Thursday at 6.30pm for anyone who wants to come along.
FoodCycle Yorkshire and Teeside Regional Manager, Mathew Milner says: ”We are thrilled to be opening a Project in Hull. As the rising cost-of-living hits communities across Yorkshire, our service is more vital than ever and we look forward to providing a welcoming space and a nutritious, three-course meal to anyone in the community who needs it, no questions asked.”
FoodCycle Needs You
FoodCycle Hull Marfleet is looking to recruit new volunteers and Project Leaders. Flexible volunteer roles without a minimum time commitment are open to anyone and include food collection, surplus food coordinators, cooking, hosting and running Projects.
Serving up free weekly community meals using food that would otherwise have gone to waste, FoodCycle is a vital service relies on its volunteers to provide nutritious food and conversation across the UK.
When asked what motivates them to show up, 95% of FoodCycle volunteers want to help reduce food poverty; other reasons included wanting to help strengthen their local community (82%), passionate about saving food from going to waste (88%), wanting to help tackle loneliness (78%), and to meet new people (69%).
Kate McDonald from Timebank Hull and East Riding says: “We are delighted to be welcoming FoodCycle to our mutual aid hub at Marfleet because the project has many synergies with our work. As a timebank, we unlock the assets, which are often hidden in communities – skills, spaces and support using time as the currency. One hour equals one time credit and we move the narrative away from the needy and the needed to we all have something to offer and we all need things too – reciprocity!
“We are passionate about food and how food brings communities together. Over the last few years we have become known for hosting large scale feasts and are now supporting the development of ethical local food enterprises as part of a bigger vision for a regenerative local food system. A weekly meal, which brings the community together with Food Cycle, is a wonderful addition to the area. The opportunities for training and leadership development the project offers community members is really exciting and we look forward to the creativity of the dishes prepared and the energy of people coming together to eat it.”
FoodCycle’s free community meals are open to all, and guests range from low-income families, people affected by homelessness and those who cannot afford to buy food. No questions asked, you can just turn up and take a seat.
Without volunteers, FoodCycle cannot provide a vital service to the community who have come to rely on the chance to sit down to a free, three-course meal every week.
Opening on 26th May 2022, FoodCycle Hull Marfleet will take place every Thursday from 6.30pm at Marfleet Community Centre, Rear of 22-24 Swanfield Rd, Hull, HU9 4PX.
To sign up as a volunteer or for more information on FoodCycle visit www.foodcycle.org.uk or email [email protected].