Northampton foodbank users to get tasty meals from Food4Heroes in new pilot scheme

A Northampton food bank will now receive 100 meals a week from food Food4Heroes following a new project that’s been rolled out this week.

It comes after the success of the Food4Heroes campaign, which started on March 24 when its founders came across a nurse in floods of tears at the end of a long shift as she was exhausted and unable to buy any food.

The charity has since supported NHS front line staff during the pandemic with ready-made meals for them to eat at work or after their busy shift if the shelves at the supermarkets were bare.

The not-for-profit organisation, has to date raised more than £400,000 and has so-far delivered 230,000 ready-made meals to NHS staff across the country.

Now, bosses are reaching out to Weston Favell Food Bank to take part in a new pilot scheme to help feed those going hungry in the Eastern District.

Foodbank boss Anne Woodly said: "We started the scheme this week with 100 meals, which are really nutritionally balanced.

"Sometimes people who access the food bank are not in the right frame of mind to cook from scratch - especially if they’re feeling depressed or anxious, it can be quite hard to motivate themselves.

"Everyone who took a meal was really keen to try them and there was not one person who said no."

The food bank works by a referral agency issuing 'food vouchers' to those who need them. The voucher will then give them three days worth of emergency food.

Chefs at the Corby pub made sweet and sour pork with rice for meat-eaters and a mushroom risotto with kale for vegetarians.

The pilot scheme has also been rolled out to food banks in Kettering and Daventry, and if it proves to be successful the project will go nationwide.

The foodbank sees 1,000 users a month, and over lockdown volunteers saw users skyrocket as 324 food parcels in April 2020 were handed out, compared to 177 on an average month last year.