Food Surplus Redistribution

Putting surplus food to best use

Surplus redistribution provides a key opportunity to ensure safe, edible food is used to feed people. Under Ambition 2030, the Food and Drink Federation supports members by providing practical guidance and working with partners to help increase and improve food surplus redistribution across the food & drink manufacturing sector.

This page brings together key guidance, aiming to:

Make the redistribution landscape easier to understand and navigate
Provide practical, factory‑level guidance tailored to manufacturing
Align advice with WRAP guidance, retailer requirements and policy developments
Help members overcome logistical, technical, food safety and brand integrity barriers
Showcase good practice across the food and drink manufacturing sector

139 million

meals redistributed by food and drink manufacturers in 2024 (WRAP figures)

10.2 million

more meals than in 2023

UK Food and Drink Pact Redistribution working group

The UK Food and Drink Pact Redistribution Working Group brings together businesses from across the supply chain with redistribution organisations and solution providers to increase the amounts of surplus being redistributed for human consumption. The group is co‑chaired by Natalie Verner (Food and Drink Federation) and Saacha Celestial‑One (Co‑Founder, Olio), with a focus on sharing best practice, identifying barriers and opportunities, developing practical resources and research, and monitoring progress.

Membership is open to all UK Food and Drink Pact signatories. FDF members can also input via Natalie Verner.

Contact Natalie

UK Food and Drink Pact Redistribution working group

Government action on food waste

Surplus redistribution sits alongside wider government action on food waste, including the upcoming Number 10 National Programme to Redistribute Surplus Food and Circular Economy Growth Plan. FDF continues to engage with policymakers to ensure that regulation supports effective waste prevention, redistribution and reduction across the supply chain. We also amplify the asks of redistributors where we are aligned.

Member update – Food Waste Policy

How FDF supports members

Through our Ambition 2030 programme, FDF works with manufacturers, redistribution organisations, retailers and policymakers to make surplus redistribution simpler and more effective.

Part of the FDF Environmental Sustainability team, Natalie Verner is our Food Surplus & Redistribution lead. You can contact Natalie directly for any queries about Food Surplus & Redistribution or FDF Membership.

Contact Natalie

Food surplus redistribution projects

FDF works with several organisations across the UK, who are working on projects to tackle food waste and redistribute food to those who need it most.

Alliance Food Sourcing

Alliance Food Sourcing is a cross‑supply‑chain collaboration bringing together manufacturers, retailers, logistics providers and redistribution organisations to unlock surplus food and redirect it into human consumption. It focuses on coordinated solutions to hard‑to‑reach and mid‑stream surplus that may otherwise go to waste.

About Alliance Food Sourcing

City Harvest

City Harvest rescues surplus food from manufacturers, suppliers and retailers and delivers it free of charge to charities, helping to feed people while preventing good food from being wasted.

Visit City Harvest

Company Shop Group

A unique long-standing redistribution model, combining scale and infrastructure to process huge volumes of surplus, with a not-for-profit social enterprise that supports communities across the UK. Part of the business as a commercial retailer, has a network of Company Shop ‘surplus supermarkets’, in which surplus is redistributed and sold at discounted prices to members who meet a specific criteria to join. The other half of the business is its not-for-profit social enterprise, a multi-functional social supermarket Community Shop, which aims to tackle the root causes of food insecurity in the UK’s most deprived communities.

About Company Shop

Felix

After Fareshare and The Felix project joined forces to become the UK’s leading food redistribution charity, Felix now supports more than 8,000 community organisations across the UK. The charity manages seven depots and works with 16 network partners to operate a total of 35 depots across the UK. In 2025, they collectively redistributed 148 million meals to those in need.

Visit Felix

The Bread and Butter Thing

The Bread and Butter Thing is a member‑based food redistribution charity operating community food clubs in low‑income areas. It works with food manufacturers to redistribute surplus food directly into communities, supporting households while reducing waste.

Visit The Bread and Butter Thing

Zest

Zest works with food and drink manufacturers to use data and AI‑enabled technology to identify food waste and surplus in real time. This helps businesses prevent waste and identify surplus earlier.

Visit Zest