Community fridge in Gortin saves 24,000 meals from landfill

Tens of thousands of meals have been saved from being dumped thanks to a community fridge in County Tyrone.

Local supermarkets and businesses donate fresh food, keeping the fridges stocked with perishable food which was destined for landfill.

Angela O’Brien, who manages the Owenkillew centre where the community fridge in Gortin is based, said it had saved 10 tonnes of edible food – 24,000 meals – since it was set up in 2023.

She said it was “horrendous” to see so much food being thrown out when it could be used by families.

The Community Fridge Network is coordinated by Hubbub, a UK-wide charity dedicated to promoting sustainability and protecting the environment.

The first community fridge to open its doors in Northern Ireland was in Cloughmills in County Antrim in 2017.

They have been growing in popularity since then and there are now 15 run by community groups and volunteers in shared spaces such as schools and community centres.

Anyone can use them.

A food bank can help if you cannot afford to buy the food you need.

People usually need a referral, it is normally not possible just to walk into one and get food.

A community fridge is available to everyone regardless of how much they earn.

There are other initiatives across the 11 council areas in NI including social supermarkets.

There are eight hens in the community garden, and when they hear Dave Rickford, who oversees the community fridge, rattling bags of fruit and veg, they make an excited dash to his feet.

Opening bags and scattering contents on the ground, Dave said the hungry hens have their favourites – grapes and cabbage – “but they’ll have a go at eating anything”

They eat the food which is not legally fit for human consumption.

Their waste creates compost and they lay eggs which are used in the fridge.

According to the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP), the average person in NI wastes 86kg (185lbs) of food annually – 210kg per household .

The Department for Agriculture, the Environment and Rural Affairs (Daera) is a signatory to the UK Courtauld Commitment 2030, with WRAP, the primary delivery partner for food waste prevention in Northern Ireland.

The estimated total cost of edible food purchased that ends up as wasted food in Northern Ireland for 2021-22 is £442m.

This represents £231 per person, or £572 per household.

A mother-of-three children who was visiting the community fridge for the first time said it was “much better than I imagined”.

She said her grandma would be “disgusted” if she saw the amount of waste.

Lavinia McFarland, along with her son, Samuel and his grandmother, try to go to the community fridge every week on a Wednesday afternoon.

She said the food she received was amazing.

“There’s nothing wrong with the produce,” she said.

“It’s a great incentive, great for the environment and great for the people.”