Community fridge set up in Eye to tackle food waste

Community organisers in Eye, Suffolk, have set up a community fridge to tackle the growing issue of food waste in the town.

Eye Goes Green, an organisation safeguarding the environment in the town and its surrounding villages, celebrated the opening of the fridge on Tuesday, joined by town mayor Johnnie Walker.

Located in Eye Library, people are being urged to donate their surplus perishable goods to the fridge.

Anybody is free to collect food that has been donated on a pay-what-you-can basis, with a collection tin on hand nearby to help with running costs.

“Its all about food sharing,” said Mary Ager, an organiser for Eye Goes Green, who has worked with environmental charity Hubbub to bring the project to fruition.

The 62-year-old, of Oak Crescent, said she hoped residents and businesses would contribute to the scheme.

“It’s not just businesses,” she said. “There are people producing excess produce in their gardens and allotments, making fresh food that otherwise would not be used.”

Just a few days in and the shelves in the fridge are beginning to be filled with ham, sausages, vegetables and puddings.

In total, 6.6 million tonnes of food waste comes from our homes each year in the UK, at a cost of £14 billion, according to environmental charity WRAP, and preventing it is key to tackling the climate crisis.

Cllr Walker praised the initiative, which will go some way to tackling food poverty in the area.

“The idea is absolutely brilliant,” he said. “The amount of food in the country that shops throw away is a disgrace.

“This gives people the opportunity to re-distribute and use that food that would otherwise go to waste, which is fantastic.

“It’s going to be such and asset to the community here in Eye, and a great opportunity to get a system working.

“And let’s not forget, there are also people that don’t have a lot of money, and might be struggling to put food on the table, so this is going to be a great benefit to them, too.”

The Eye community fridge is located inside the foyer of Eye Library, in Cross Street.

It is only accessible during the library’s normal opening hours, which you can find here.

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