A Dundee food charity may have to close if their only transport cannot be replaced.
Fairfield Community Food Larder feeds more than 300 families – or 1,000 people – every week, using a borrowed van to collect and deliver donations.
Now, the owner of the van needs it back for work, leaving volunteers worried about the future of their services.
Jim Sorrie, director of the Fairfield Community Hub, where the larder operates, said: “It [the van] has become absolutely crucial to us to allow us to collect donations, deliver emergency food parcels etcetera.
“Unfortunately the owner of the van now needs to take it back as he needs it for work.
“We use the van to collect donations and supplies.
“We also use it to make deliveries twice a week to vulnerable people who are unable to get to the larder themselves.”
The larder was founded in May 2020 to help a handful of people.
By March last year, 60 people were visiting every day.
Jimmy said: “We now have 321 member families, totalling more than 1,000 people, who regularly get food parcels from us.
“We also have 27 members we deliver food parcels to twice a week.
“Without our van this would all be impossible.”
The larder has six volunteers but only one has a car.
“We are desperate to try to find an alternative to the van we have lost,” Jimmy said.
“So many families rely on us and we want to be able to keep doing what we are currently doing to help eliminate food poverty.”
Plea for help
Jimmy and the volunteers are now faced with three options – raise money for a van of their own, find new volunteer who owns a van, or have a vehicle donated.
He said: “We understand that all of these options are a massive ask but
without some kind of help and a new vehicle we will be forced to shut down, meaning thousands of people are going to struggle every week.”
Anyone who can help is asked to contact Fairfield Community Food Larder on Facebook.
