Aber Food Surplus are a pioneering not-for-profit social enterprise focused on tackling food waste and delivering meaningful community change.
We aim to tackle the root causes of problems and do this in a collaborative, creative and constructive way. We are taking action on climate change, and doing it now, where we believe we can make a difference. Right here, in our local community. Our vision is to facilitate Aberystwyth to become a zero-food waste town and in the process provide empowering opportunities, and build local food resilience.
Photo courtesy of No Church in the Wild
Will you join us?
Our approach
Is centred on 5 overarching components:
1. Honest, Open and Fair
2. People-centred
3. Holistic
4. Inclusive and Participatory
5. Ambitious
Our values
We are grounded in 3 key values:
1. Happiness
2. Community
3. Creativity
We are a Living Wage Foundation accredited employer.
We are recognised as Disability Confident
We are working towards improving our use of the Welsh language - In 2018 we received the Menter Iaith Welsh Language Bronze Award
In 2018 we achieved the ‘Environmental Awareness Award’ from Menter Aberystwyth business community
We have progressive environmental policies, and we have signed up to the Welsh Governments ‘Eco Code’, and the Business Wales ‘Green Growth Pledge’. We encourage all businesses to do their part and sign up too.
Funding
Our project was established by volunteers in 2015 / 2016. Volunteers continued to run the project and fundraise through ‘Pay As You Feel’ events. In 2018 the team decided they needed grant funding to effectively pilot the project and explore the opportunities that surplus food presented to our town. In 2018 we received support from the LEADER program for one year through the Cynnal Y Cardi Local Action Group (administered by Ceredigion County Council), which was funded through the Welsh Government Rural Communities – Rural Development Programme 2014-2020, which was funded by the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development and the Welsh Government.
In 2019 we received our second major funding grant from the National Lottery Community Fund to expand our work, and to establish the community fridge space and an environmental hub in Aberystwyth - this has been named the ECO (Environment, Community, Opportunity) Food Sharing Hub. The funding will finish in January 2021.
We have also received financial support from Tai Ceredigion, Aberystwyth Town Council, the Ship and Castle pub in Aberystwyth, and Hubbub Foundation.
We are not funded by the government or the supermarkets.