Food Aid Sustainability

Plymouth City Council has sought  consultancy support to facilitate work that it is being done with Food Aid organisations in working collectively to ensure that people on low incomes can afford healthy food. This builds on the work of Food Plymouth working with University of Plymouth and Plymouth City Council to understand and address the causes and consequences of Food Poverty.

The outcome of this project will be to create a co-operative business model solution for Plymouth to manage food-aid activities in a more sustainable and inclusive manner than the systems that presently exist. The new co-operative/s should provide a more collaborative and financially viable approach to collecting and distributing food in Plymouth and should seek to address both food insecurity and food waste.

Within Phase 1 of this project, 3 different models for co-operative business models in Plymouth are presented and explored:

1. Food co-operatives

2. a) Organisational bulk buying food co-operatives and b) Co-operative Distribution Centres 

3. ‘Added Value’ Food Co-operatives

A new report is investigating community-led business solutions to manage the collection and distribution of food in Plymouth. Funded by DEFRA, the report is aimed at identifying a co-operative business model solution for Plymouth to manage food-aid activities in a more sustainable and inclusive way.

Download the Co-operative options for Food Aid providers in Plymouth report

Phase 1 Launch Event

The report was launched at an event on 18 November as part of the Plymouth Social Enterprise City Festival 2021. Aimed primarily at food aid organisations, the event invited discussion around the pros and cons of alternative community led options for reducing dependency on food aid in Plymouth.

Over the coming months we will explore and develop the thinking and cover in further workshops and events.