‘This food is the difference between health and illness’

Polly Dunbar looks at the remarkable story of how The Felix Project, a food redistribution charity born from tragedy, stepped up to become London’s fourth emergency service

- Polly Dunbar

An astonishing charity success now dominates London as a hunger crisis has gripped the most vulnerable in the capital. It is a network of volunteers from The Felix Project – thousands of people who are spread across the city in an unprecedented effort to assuage the hunger of those in need.

The green and white Felix Project vans are almost as frequently seen as the Evening Standard delivery vans once were and provide a crucial support system. The idea for the initiative was born 10 years ago, named after a remarkable 14-year-old boy who died tragically of meningitis. It eventually led his parents on a path to find a way to celebrate his kindness and also meet a desperate need of the poorest who were unable to find enough means to feed themselves.

Justin and Jane Byam Shaw were particularly inspired by a time when Felix had helped to feed a group of boys from London who had turned up to play in a football tournament on empty stomachs. “He couldn’t quite believe what he was hearing when he found out that some of those boys hadn’t had any breakfast,” says Jane.

In 2016, The Felix Project was born to “fulfill some of his dreams”, by rescuing food that would otherwise go to waste – from wholesalers, supermarkets, farms, restaurants and high street chains such as Pret a Manger – and giving it to community organizations and schools.