First of five council funded affordable food hubs to open in Southwick

For just £7.50 each week, people who sign up weekly to become members of The Bread and Butter Thing will get around £35 worth of food,  including fresh fruit and vegetables, chilled food for the fridge and cupboard staples such as pasta and cereals.

This will be the second Bread and Butter Thing food hub in Sunderland. They already have another which operates from the Pennywell Neighbourhood Centre which is supported by Gentoo and Karbon Homes.

The surplus good food comes from supermarkets, factories and farms and changes daily. While the content of bags changes from week to week, it will always be quality fresh produce and members of the scheme will always pay much less than they would in the shops.

The City Council is supporting The Bread and Butter Thing to open five new affordable food hubs across the city. The location of the other four are due to be confirmed over the next few weeks.

Councillor Linda Williams, Sunderland City Council's Cabinet Member for Vibrant City, said: "This affordable food hub will provide a vital lifeline to families who are struggling to cope with the spiraling cost of everyday essentials. We are delighted to be supporting The Bread and Butter Thing to open five new hubs across the city as part of the wider work we are doing to support our communities through the cost of living crisis."

Councillor Kelly Chequer, the City Council's Cabinet Member for Healthy City, who is also a Southwick councillor, added: "We know the importance of healthy eating and the protection this provides against a range of diseases and conditions. So, it's brilliant to see this project making use of surplus and healthy good food at a time when many of our residents are really struggling to afford healthy nutritious food to feed their families."

The Bread and Butter Thing which was founded in Manchester in 2016, works with manufacturers, retailers and the hospitality industry to redistribute surplus food to people who need it the most. It's community vans regularly redistribute over 100 tonnes of food a week to over 80 community locations.

Mark Game, CEO of The Bread and Butter Thing added: "I'm delighted that we are working with Sunderland City Council to expand our service and bring the benefits of our mobile affordable clubs across the city. Not only does The Bread and Butter Thing help people to better afford to feed their families, it also opens up new foods and improves diet diversity, builds community with our fabulous volunteers and aids people's financial situation by stretching household budgets that bit further."

There is no commitment and the scheme is free to join. Once they have signed up to be a member, people will receive a weekly text on a Wednesday asking them if they want to order. If they reply yes, their order will be delivered to the food hub at Austin House in Shakespeare Street, Southwick at 2pm on the Friday. People can choose from a top selling family bag at £7.50, an individual bag for £4 or a large family bag for £15. There is also a vegetarian option.

Because the weekly bags are made up of surplus food from supermarkets, food manufacturers and farmers, the bag of food will be different each week. Most members collect their bag of food from the project and then top up from the supermarket when they see what's in it.

To find out more about the project and sign up, visit: https://www.breadandbutterthing.org/become-a-member. Full details will be supplied when people sign up.