Falkirk Foodbank: Nando's carrier bag charges and chicken initiative help charity feed those in need

Nando’s will donate £108,000 to 36 charities across Scotland and Wales to support relieving food poverty in the communities in which its restaurants operate.

Each charity, as members of the Nando’s ‘No Chuckin’ Our Chicken’ initiative, will receive £3000. The initiative was established in 2013 to help local charities feed communities in need while reducing food waste – with each Nando’s restaurant selecting their own charity partner.

Nando’s at the Central Retail Park is supporting Falkirk Foodbank, based in Tamfourhill Industrial Estate.

The donations – £84,000 in Scotland and £24,000 in Wales – have been funded by the mandatory 10p and 5p charges for single-use paper carrier bags in Scotland and Wales respectively. Nando’s has collected these charges in line with regulations since 2015 and is committed to continuing to donate proceeds to its local charity partners.

Richard Craft, Nando’s UK community lead, said: “We know that the start of the year can be a particularly challenging time for local charities as everyone looks to cut back on their spending. That’s why we’ve committed to making these donations to our charity partners in Scotland and Wales. We hope these donations, on top of our food donation programme, will help our fantastic partners to continue their work in feeding those who need it most.”

Nando’s No Chuckin’ Our Chicken scheme sees any cooked chicken that hasn’t been sold temperature checked, frozen and delivered to each restaurant’s charity partner at the end of every night. To date, Nando’s has provided the equivalent of over 3 million meals to more than 500 UK charities. Nando’s works in partnership with the UK’s largest food redistribution charity FareShare to run the programme.

Lindsay Boswell, chief executive at FareShare, said: “The cost of living crisis is having a disproportionate impact on those already struggling to make ends meet, and our charities are finding it increasingly hard to meet the skyrocketing demand from those in need. The support from Nando’s and its No Chuckin’ Our Chicken scheme continues to be invaluable in aiding national donations and helping FareShare continue delivering much needed food this winter.”