ALDI EAST GRINSTEAD

As a Community Fridge we collect surplus food that could otherwise easily end up in the landfill and make it available for people to take and consume in exchange for a small donation. As a Community Cafe we also provide a full cafe menu available to all. Our Cafe ethos has always been to try to provide the best possible quality at the lowest possible price. In addition to this we also utilised our FSA 5* kitchen to enable us to produce our own made frozen ready meals that we use within the cafe or give out to those that have difficulty cooking for themselves. We also repackage large catering size products into more usable sizes for individuals and families. For anyone in crisis we can provide a hot meal in our cafe as well as a supply of fresh and frozen stock to take home with them. We work in partnership with the East Grinstead Foodbank and take referrals from many local agencies including GP Surgeries, Schools, Early Help Teams and many more.

We collect food that would otherwise be wasted and feed our community. We are established opening our new premises in October 2023 which allows us to save more food and feed more people. We are moving to a Community Hub hopefully by the end of the year so will be able to increase our opening hours providing more services and food.

Community Fridges are registered places where surplus food is shared with the local community, by businesses and individuals. So far they've helped thousands connect to their communities, access nutritious food, save money and reduce waste. Frequently Asked Questions: WHO CAN USE THE FOREST ROW COMMUNITY FRIDGE? We welcome absolutely everybody into the community fridge to collect food. We want to reduce food waste, and you can help with that by taking what you need. You do not have to be based in Forest Row, if you can make it to the fridge during our opening hours, you are welcome. DO I HAVE TO PAY? No. It is completely free to take food for all. But if you can make a donation- we would be extremely grateful. These donations go towards our running costs. HOW DO I COLLECT FOOD? Come to the fridge during our open hours, have a look in the fridges and shelves. Take what you will eat and is a fair share. Please ask volunteers for guidance on how much you can take. Once you have what you need, weigh the food and log it out. The volunteers will help you. Weighing the food means that we can log how much food we are saving. We don't take any names or information about you. We ask you to please not open the the fridges or move products unless you will take them. This helps us ensure allergens stay within certain areas in the fridges. IS THE FRIDGE ONLY FOR THOSE IN NEED? It is not only for those in need, the fridge is open for everybody! We are trying to reduce food waste, and we can all help with that. If some free healthy food would really help you, we recommend you get to the fridge at our opening time. WHAT FOOD CAN I DONATE? Food accepted: Packaged goods within ‘use by’ date Unpackaged fruit and veg that is still good to eat Food past its ‘best before’ date but within its ‘use by’ date that is still good to eat Lion stamped eggs Cooked food from registered businesses Food NOT accepted: Raw meat or raw seafood Opened milk or other packaged food Half eaten food Any food previously frozen Any cooked food not from a registered food business Alcohol Beansprouts HOW DO I DONATE FOOD? Read the guidelines above on what food the Fridge accepts Bring food along to the Fridge during opening hours Give food to a volunteer to log donations in. Please note, the fridge accepts food that the Food Bank cannot. HOW CAN I HELP FURTHER? Consider being a volunteer We need help manning the Fridge, cleaning it, collecting food, taking deliveries, PR & marketing, admin, fundraising, you name it! If you want to help out in any way, please contact us directly at FRcommunityfridge@gmail.com Donate money If you would like to donate to the fridge to help with our overheads, please contact us FRcommunityfridge@gmail.com and we can give you more details on how to donate. HOW DO I KNOW THE FOOD IS SAFE TO EAT? We check the food, monitor the temperature and clean the Fridge regularly Users also have a responsibility – see our guidelines