FoodCycle is launching a new project cooking healthy meals made from supermarket surplus in the Calabash Centre, in George Lane, Catford

FoodCycle, founded seven years ago, is launching a new site in the Calabash Centre, in George Lane where they will cook and serve a healthy three course meal. 

Running every Saturday it is free for anyone who wants to attend, although donations are accepted, with no registration or referral needed.

Already operating 24 kitchens nationwide, the latest project is due to be up and running by next month.

MORE TOP STORIES The initiative partners up with the big supermarket chains – Sainsbury’s, Tesco’s, Morrison’s and more – and then uses the excess food, which otherwise would have been binned, to cook up a healthy meal.

Clare Skelton, communications manager, explained how it begun: “We thought look at all this food waste and look at all these people who are hungry, let’s combine the two.”

Courtesy of Chris King

The Catford branch is opening with the help of the Rushey Green Time Bank, which has a host of volunteers ready to man the stoves.

Ms Skelton continued: “We’re trying to begin training this week and in February starting to welcome guests, it usually takes about two to three months to get a project up and running properly.”

But she assured everything they collect from the supermarkets, and some local traders, is all fresh.

She added: “Our volunteers go out to a number of shops and we never know what to expect.

“We go into the back of the store and take whatever is surplus, we once had two trays of fresh cherries.

“It’s like ready steady cook, we have no idea what we’re going to get, we put it all down on a table and say let’s make this.”

A key thing about the project was having people sitting down and eating together.

Courtesy of Chris King

No one is discouraged from attending, and Ms Skelton said they welcome a variety of people every week: “We get a complete mix of people at every project, mostly people on low incomes, people who have been made redundant, people who are homeless.

“We get a lot of older people too and we do have a number of families.”

She added they still needed volunteers, and said: “We believe we make a positive difference.

“We’re solving food poverty in the short term, if someone comes to us and they’re hungry we feed them, but the long term impacts are so bigger.”

For more information visit: foodcycle.org.uk/location/lewisham-hub-london/