A community barbecue was held in aid of an organisation delivering around 50,000 meals a month to Hackney and Tower Hamlets charities and community projects.

Supper club group Mike's Table and Spitalfields City Farm teamed up to throw the party held at the farm.

Mike's Table cooked all the food at the barbecue from City Harvest surplus ingredients.

The Mike’s Table team create quality meals using City Harvest surplus for vulnerable community members across London, with its focal area being Hackney.

Louise Holstein, Mike’s Table founder, said: “Receiving such great food from City Harvest means our volunteer professional chefs can create fantastic restaurant quality meals for our guests - guests who wouldn't usually get the chance to eat out."

Since 2014, City Harvest has delivered nutritious surplus food for an average of 50,000 meals a month, worth more than £100k, to charities and projects.

City Harvest has also worked closely with Spitalfields City Farm, near Brick Lane, during the pandemic to help with emergency meal distribution.

Philip Nichols, of Spitalfields City Farm, said: "We worked closely with City Harvest during the lockdowns of 2020, allowing us to distribute surplus food to parents from some of the local primary schools we work with.

"Holding regular community events where we can provide people with healthy food, freshly cooked is a key part of our work. The recent joint event with City Harvest and Mike's Table was a fantastic example of this."

City Harvest rescues nutritious surplus food from manufacturers, suppliers, and retailers, delivering for free to more than 350 London charities.

Recipient groups include homeless shelters, hostels, soup kitchens, mental health charities, the elderly, community kitchens, schools, family centres, children’s programmes and domestic abuse refuges. 

City Harvest tripled in size in 2020 to meet the demand of people facing food poverty.

“Our network of recipient projects are catalysts of change in their communities, and we are proud to support them," City Harvest head of communications Fiona Hollis said.

Learn more at www.cityharvest.org.uk/city-harvest-festival