In January 2021, Louise and Lucinda, started a little fight against food waste project in our local area, we called ourselves Whitby Community Cupboard. The response for the project was overwhelming and demand was far more than we ever imagined. From the The Cupboard Network was born, opening two Cupboards in Ellesmere Port and 6 further cupboards over the next 12 months.

Our focus is not only fighting food waste but also food insecurity in our community.
WRAP research shows that 6.6 tonnes of household food waste is thrown away each year just in the UK. 70% of that is food that we could of eaten... and now with the increasing costs of both fuel and food, our service is in demand more than ever.

The Cupboards are available for ALL, and are FREE whatever the household income or situation and operate on a self service basis. We found especially during covid lockdowns and now due to rising costs, more and more working families were and are really struggling. These families often go under the radar, do not meet the requirements set by local authorities and can find themselves in food poverty, on a short or long term basis.

Here's how it works...we collect surplus food from various businesses. Many of the items are short dated, but are perfectly safe to eat. Most days we have fresh loose fruit and vegetables, bread, pastries and more! The food we have available entirely depends on donations from our partners.

All the Cupboards are ran entirely on a voluntary basis, with cupboard hosts offering a site at there homes for free. However the costs of setting up each cupboard is around £500, and the on going costs of running it is around £1500 a year.