Leading food redistribution charity FareShare today (Sept 18) announced that it is joining hands with The Felix Project to form a bigger organisation with greater national impact.
By combining FareShare’s 30 years of nationwide reach and strategic partnerships with Felix’s London expertise, the two will be able to pool resources, create more collaborative and efficient ways of working and be part of a stronger, joined-up solution to tackling food waste across the UK.
The merger will also give the two charities a stronger voice when it comes to campaigning and influencing national policy on food waste and food insecurity. This was demonstrated by the success of their award-winning joint campaign for a national £15 million fund to tackle food surplus on farms.
Through its 17 independent regional partners, including The Felix Project in London, FareShare works with the food industry to rescue good-to-eat surplus food and get it to over 8,000 charities nationwide. In 2024-25, this network helped provide the equivalent of 148m meals.
Founded over 30 years ago, FareShare has grown into the UK’s leading national food redistribution charity. Working hand in hand with thousands of local charities and volunteers, FareShare has shown how surplus food can be turned into a force for good, strengthening communities, reducing isolation and improving wellbeing.
The new charity will adopt the Felix name, with a refreshed brand identity introduced gradually as part of a phased transition, including a period of dual branding.
Charlotte Hill OBE, who has led The Felix Project to significant growth over the last three years, will be Chief Executive of the new organisation.
She said, “Our vision is a nation where no good food is wasted and nobody goes hungry. Bringing together brilliant colleagues, volunteers and partners from both organisations gives us an unprecedented opportunity to scale up food provision for the UK’s most vulnerable communities.”
Kris Gibbon-Walsh, currently the CEO of FareShare, will bring his extensive experience in the food industry to his new role as Deputy Chief Executive.
Having started as a volunteer over a decade ago, he has since led major innovations, including the launch of FareShare Go, championed the redistribution of surplus food from farms, and overseen a period of record-breaking growth.
He said, “This merger will enable us do so much more to tackle food waste at source, whilst we continue to support our brilliant independent network partners through increased food volumes, funding and operational support. We will also build on FareShare’s 30-year legacy of connecting good food with communities nationwide.”
Gavin Darby, the current Chair of Felix and former President of the Food and Drink Federation, as well as CEO of Premier Foods, will become the Vice-Chair of the new Board of Trustees.
Leaders from across the food industry and charity sector, including Simon Roberts (CEO of Sainsbury’s and Chair of IGD), Christine Heffernan (Chief Communications and Sustainability Officer at Tesco) and Sarah Bradbury (CEO of the Institute of Grocery Distribution) welcomed the announcement.