ALDI WEST BROMWICH

Our J's Pantry, run entirely by volunteers, officially opened on 24th March 2023 and is a CIC No 11531284 It aims to help local families in need, relieving and helping to prevent poverty by means of food provision and is a franchise of the national Your Local Pantry network. Our Pantry is a membership-based food club and sources its food from supermarket surplus, Fareshare and donations to help local people struggling to meet their bills for as long as they need help. Our members, currently just over 100 can visit the Pantry twice a week for a fee of £6. This enables them to choose food items to the value of around £25. In addition members can choose free fresh produce e.g. fruit, vegetables and bakery items for no additional cost. The membership fee is used by the Pantry to meet running costs e.g. utility bills and purchase top-up food stocks as required.

Formerly known as The Real Junk Food Project Birmingham, Incredible Surplus has been operating since 2014. Since then, we have redistributed over 1800 tonnes of waste food, cooked and served over 36,000 meals, helped 100 people achieve a Level 2 Food Safety Certificate, and seen dozens of volunteers move on into paid employment. All this would never have been possible without our amazing bank of volunteers and without the ongoing support of our donors and partner organisations. Our volunteers intercept food and other items that would otherwise go to waste from supermarkets, restaurants and other sources and redistribute them on a “Pay-As-You-Feel” basis. We run a series of community venues on a weekly across Birmingham and Solihull. We also ‘pop up’ at other venues. Please see www.incrediblesurplus.org for more info. The food we intercept has to be fit for human consumption and therefore we do not take food that has reached its Use By date, but we can take food past its Best Before date. Alongside food donations we also receive non-food items such as toilet rolls, household items, toys, and clothes, which we can redistribute across Birmingham at regular venues and via partner organisations. Our project is for everyone and we attract a wide range of people. In the main however, we feed people who are in food poverty; this includes the homeless, refugees, single parents, people with mental health problems. What is unique with us is that anyone can access the donated items or food on a Pay As You Feel basis. All give something back in return, whether this be a cash donation, their time, or skills. This system helps to prevent stigmatisation as well as fostering an enabling approach. Our project is predominantly run by volunteers. We have just a handful pf paid staff who are paid the living wage and volunteer extra hours on top. Many of our volunteers hold level 2 Food Hygiene Certificates, and a number of our volunteers have gained skills and qualifications and now have moved onto paid work. We're always on the look out for more donors/suppliers and volunteers!

We are hoping to increase access to high quality Information, Advice and Guidance to help residents make informed choices. Increase skills and learning abilities of residents to improve their employment and income generation. Increase links and strengthen citizenship by providing a sense of shared future amongst all residents. Increase the psychological and physical well being of residents.