Enfield, Co. Meath won a highly commended award in the 2019 Tidy Towns EPA special award for waste prevention for a project where unsold food from the local supermarket is collected and delivered to local charities.
Enfield Tidy Towns works closely with another local group, where volunteers collect unsold food from the local supermarkets in Enfield every single day of the year bar Christmas day, and immediately deliver it to local charities. Since starting three years ago, well in excess of 15 tonnes of food has been intercepted and donated, instead of ending up as waste.
The two local charities, Summerhill Meals on Wheels and the Camino (a drug rehabilitation centre), are delighted to receive the unsold food items on a regular basis. Combined, these centres prepare over 700 meals a week and have no problem in putting the donated food – mainly fruit, vegetables and bakery products – to good use.