Just Meals (Affordable meals made from surplus food)

In Sheffield, Just Meals are created by Food Works using high-quality surplus food and sold on a pay-what-you-can basis (starting from £1) to ensure everyone has access to nutritious food. To cater to everyone, Food Works offers a variety of options for all dietary requirements, including vegan meals which are easily identified by an orange sticker.

You can pick up Just Meals directly from Food Works cafes and their warehouse, or find them at various local collection points across the city – a system designed to reduce costs and minimise road traffic.

There are many other ways to eat well on a budget using surplus food. Many communities benefit from surplus shops, food waste cafes, or community fridges where people share what they don’t need. These initiatives provide a vital lifeline for those on a tight budget while keeping perfectly edible food out of the bin.

Pay-what-you-can meals

Many social enterprises across Engalnd now offer ‘pay-what-you-can models’. This means that people with a bit more money can pay more, and this helps to fund those who can’t afford to pay as much.

The General Store (York) is one example. Different to a food bank, people just arrive twice a week to fill a bag with a suggested donation of £1, to find food that would otherwise go to landfill.

In the UK alone, around 9.5 millon tonnes of food is wasted each year, yet so many people are struggling to eat. Bring your bag, and take as much as you want!

Even LIDL now offers ‘too good to waste’ fresh produce boxes early mornings, with 5kg of slightly imperfect fruits and veggies at under £2. However, these are not pay-as-you-want, these boxes don’t make profit, with any surplus  going to food charities. Why can’t the other big supermarkets do the same?