King to open two food distribution hubs to mark 76th birthday

The King will open two food distribution hubs to mark his 76th birthday. 

The opening of the centres will also mark the first anniversary of the Coronation Food Project, an initiative to support charities that feed the nation with unwanted food.

Charles, who celebrates his birthday next Thursday, will open the initiative’s first two Coronation Food Hubs – one in person and one virtually – which are designed to save and circulate tonnes of surplus food.

It is hoped the hubs will aid charities like FareShare and the Felix Project in supporting communities in need.

The King will also attend a “surplus food festival” at one of the hubs, with meals created from food that would otherwise have gone to waste.

He will also meet beneficiaries and representatives of food banks, schools and community groups.

The Coronation Food Project is investing in a network of hubs, adding capacity to warehouses, boosting cold storage facilities and funding lorries, vans and drivers to boost their distribution capacity.

The palace said “remarkable progress” has already been made towards reaching the project’s goals, pointing out that the project has already saved an additional 940 tonnes of surplus food – equivalent to 2,240,000 meal portions.

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Some £15m has been raised to build and run a network of up to 10 hubs across the UK.

The initiative has also given £715,000 in community food grants to 33 organisations across the UK.

An impact report, detailing the work of the Coronation Food Project, is set to be released on Thursday.