Foodsave Beer, the village’s community larder, has celebrated a successful first year.

Thanks to its work, one in six local households are now receiving food items that would otherwise have gone to waste.

 Foodsave Beer was set up in November 2022 as an extension of Foodsave CIC in Honiton. This organisation collects surplus food items from shops and businesses and redistributes them to anyone who can make use of them. The aim is to reduce waste while saving people money. More than 300 households in the Honiton area are now benefiting from this initiative every week.

Foodsave Beer holds one session a week at the Mariners' Hall. People can come and take the food items they want on Tuesdays from 12.30pm until supplies run out. 

Beryl, one of Foodsave Beer’s volunteers, said she's proud of the time she donates to the larder: “Being part of Foodsave enables me to enjoy the camaraderie of belonging to a team of helpers who all have the same objective: to save the dreadful waste of good food, and by doing so making a difference, if only small, to a lot of lives.”

Jake Bonetta, founder and Director of Foodsave CIC, said he's excited about Foodsave Beer’s future.

“It seems like yesterday that our wonderful team in Beer opened their doors, and yet they have already created a real community asset for the village. As we continue with our plans to open a number of new locations in the coming few months, we can’t wait to see what time has in store for for the organisation. I am so proud of the people involved in ensuring our larder’s success in Beer, and here’s to many more anniversaries going forward!”

Foodsave Beer would like to thank the Mariners’ Hall Committee, Beer GP practice and Beer Men’s Shed for their support, alongside the kind financial backing from village groups and individuals.

To find out more about Foodsave Beer and their services, visit their website at www.foodsave.org.uk/beer. Anyone who would like to get involved, especially within the volunteer driver team, should go along to one of their sessions or contact the team via beer@foodsave.org.uk or 07471 282626.