Sadness as Food for Thought closes in Darlington

Food for Thought, in Darlington, had been running for four years to try to reduce food waste in the town but closed after being unable to find new accommodation. 

The organisation aimed to stop food from being thrown unnecessarily in the bin and instead diverted it to families in need.

It also ran pop-up cafe events, cookery classes and went to food festivals and markets.

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Louise Graham, who ran the community interest company, said: “Our ethos at Food for Thought was very much about what can we do when the community comes together. We did that successfully for four years and we  had grown and grown to become a huge support to around 70 households a week.

“At the end of October we lost our premises and despite our best efforts we couldn’t find anywhere else that could accommodate us.”

Food for Thought had been running at St James the Great Church, in Albert Hill, for the last two years but had to move out in October and has been unable to find alternative accommodation.

A decision was made this year to close it for good, with all its remaining assets and equipment given to Darlington Assistance for Refugees, while remaining funds was spent on shopping vouchers, which have been distributed.

She added: “It’s very sad to see such a great organisation go. It wasn’t just support for the recipients and the people who used our services but it was also a huge support for people who volunteered.

“We became a very close knit and supportive community. We worked hard together and we helped and supported people.

“There are food banks but we were more than that. What we did was rescue surplus food and other items and redistributed them to people who would benefit.”

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Over the years, thousands of meals have been created from food which could have ended up in the bin.

"It really opened my eyes to how much food waste there is,” she added. “It’s overwhelming. When we did the first Christmas event I couldn’t believe the mountain of food that was going to be thrown away.

“That feeling never goes away.”

The issue of food waste is moving in the right direction – but is still a big issue.

“We were doing out bit and awareness is growing on the issue but by no means has the problem been resolved.

“The bread mountain is a big issue. We give extra loaves to family to freeze but even then we get hundreds and hundreds of loaves a week – sometimes we had to turn it down because there was so much we didn’t know what to do with it.”

She thanked all of the organisation’s volunteers and supporters. She said: “People gave their time so freely and really incapsulated what philanthropy is about. It’s not about money, it’s about recognising that at the moment we have huge inequality in our community and we share this community with people who are struggling. It’s our responsibility to try and level the playing field if we can and help each other out.

“I think that community spirit will be missed.”

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