'We've saved 34 tonnes of food and a carpet'

ByAlex Pope

Northamptonshire

Volunteers have clocked up more than 1,000 hours of service to save 34 tonnes of uneaten food from the British Grand Prix at Silverstone, going into the bin.

Since Sunday, about 50 helpers from Roade and Towcester's Community Larders have driven back and forth from the Northamptonshire racetrack to offer up items like eggs, milk, fruit, vegetables, and even a carpet, at pop-up shops.

Katie Steele, from the Towcester group, said it had seen "record attendances" and believed the groups had helped about 3,000 people.

She said the collections ended on Friday and were only made possible by "absolutely amazing teamwork".

Steele said on Monday volunteers had processed 12 tonnes of food waste, and the number kept on growing.

Teams back at base weighed and sorted each collection before holding a number of pop-up food shops throughout the week.

She added: "We had record attendances. By Wednesday we were at 18 tonnes, we were giving out things like fruit, eggs, bread, bacon, butter, really great food.

"On Monday 450 people turned up to our first pop-up sale, when normally it would be about 350."

The community larders normally offer a membership scheme, where surplus food can be bought at discount prices, but for the food from Silverstone it had been "open to all".

On Monday night volunteers had worked until midnight to make sure everyone who was at the pop-up shop could get served.

Steele said the team was "literally on their knees" and had to put their feet in ice blocks just to cool off.

She added: "When there is so much food, it's really important to open it up to the wider network, else we'd end up with a lot of waste.

"We've tried to reach as many people as possible.

"It's been a really random but great year. We've had disposable plates, cling film, toilet rolls and we even rescued a carpet and donated it to a family who hadn't any carpets upstairs.

She clarified that the unused goods from the Formula 1 event can't be taken with them, so get left behind.

She added: "It just feels like it has such a positive impact.

"We have an absolutely amazing team, working during a heatwave.

"They never complained about how many hours they gave."

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