The Devon & Cornwall Food Association Ltd (DCFA)

NEWSLETTER
October - November 2011
Patron: Judi Spiers, BBC Radio Devon Spare Food is Share Food!
7 Whimple Street, Plymouth, Devon PL1 2DH Mobile: 07745819828 (text only) Email: saudigeoff@yahoo.co.uk Website: http://dcfa.webs.com

FOREWORD BY THE COMPANY CHAIR

Mrs. Christine REID Dear Friends and Supporters, I have some exciting news to announce to you... DCFA has appointed its first member of paid staff! Ms. Victoria HURTH has been appointed as our part-time DCFA Project Coordinator and will take up appointment in midNovember 2011. Another big step forward for the DCFA project! You will have heard in the media recently that food poverty is on the increase. So now its more important than ever that our project should succeed. But it will only succeed with your continuing help and support. At the end of September we said goodbye to Esme GOSS, our volunteer Milk Team Coordinator. Esme looked after the distribution of milk and cream for us each and every week. We thank Esme for all shes done and wish her well for the future. Karen BOWLER has kindly agreed to step into the post and we all wish her a warm welcome! DCFA has already saved various local organisations 5,500 by supplying them with milk and cream. I should like to remind you all that our first AGM will be held st on Tuesday, 1 November at 6 p.m. Theres more information about this later in this Newsletter. We have a lovely, lively Guest Speaker lined up for you, and Victoria will be available to meet everyone. I am a little concerned about the poor response received so far! So do please come along to our AGM and show your support.

BIG RISE IN CHARITY FOOD DEMAND

An article broadcast by the BBC nd on Sunday, 2 October 2011

IGURES FROM A UK CHARITY show a sharp rise in demand on charities for food. FareShare, which redirects food trade surpluses to those in need, said its donations were reaching 35,000 people a day, up from 29,000 a day last year. The organisation said it had seen the largest annual increase in the number of charities asking for handouts. FareShare said low-income families were struggling with rising food prices, and one in three charities it surveyed was facing government funding cuts. Unprecedented demand The charity has 17 locations around the UK and passes on good quality supplies from the British food industry to a wide network of grassroots organisations such as homeless hostels, women's refuges, day centres and after-school clubs. It said that last year it provided 8.6 million meals, and this year it was facing unprecedented demand from some 700 organisations.

DCFA Editorial Comment: FareShare is a national charity operating in conjunction with Sainsburys. The nearest FareShare outlet to the Devon & Cornwall region is at Bristol. It would take a ten-hour round trip to travel from Plymouth in a van to collect food produce from there and then to return to Plymouth to distribute it to our charitable receiving organisations. We would also have to pay FareShare for this service as it does not come free! This is the reason that DCFA was set up as a separate, autonomous organisation dealing solely with our region. The world does not stop at Bristol!

We do need to know whether you will be attending or not so do please let Geoff know as soon as you can! Contact details at top of page.

Christine
Christine REID Chair of the DCFA Board of Trustees

The Devon & Cornwall Food Association Ltd. (DCFA) is a Private Company Limited by Guarantee. Registered Company No. 07419679. Registered Charity No. - DCFA is recognised by HMRC as a Charity for tax purposes under Reference XT27083. Members of : NCVO (The National Council for Voluntary Organisations) Membership No. MEMBERVC/13004, PTSC (The Plymouth Third Sector Consortium), The Small Charities Coalition, And Volunteering England Membership No.1278747.
Our Funder:

And Voluntary Donations.

EDITORIAL COMMENT

AN ARTICLE BY ALISON SHAW

DCFA Trustee and Public Relations Officer

NTERNET Links. If youre reading this on-line and come across words with blue lettering that are underlined, then you can click on these links and be taken directly to another site for more information on that particular topic. If you read this on Microsoft Word, you can put your cursor over the link, hold down the Control (Ctrl) Key and click! Ed.

GREETINGS!

H S F

APPY BIRTHDAY TO Gitty ANKERS for Sunday, 23 October 2010. Gitty is a Co-opted Member to the DCFA Board of Trustees. Thanks Gitty and have a lovely day!

rd

O CELEBRATIONS IN NOVEMBER. Have we missed anyone?

DCFA MEETINGS
EPTEMBER 2011 BOARD Meeting. The September th meeting took place on Monday, 5 at the Catherine Street Baptist Church.

EXT MEETING. There will be no meeting in October st 2011. The next meeting will be on Tuesday, 1 November 2011 which will be our first Annual General Meeting. This will be held at 6 p.m. at The Crown Centre, Plymouth. UTURE MEETINGS. All meetings are scheduled to start at 10.30 a.m. at the Catherine Street Baptist Church unless otherwise stated. This information is subject to change at short notice. Tuesday, 1 November 2011 Annual General Meeting (6 p.m. at The Crown Centre, Plymouth) Tuesday, 6 December 2011 General Board Meeting followed by Christmas Drinks & Mince Pies (Plymouth - Shekinah Mission) Tuesday, 7 February 2012 General Board Meeting Spare Food is Share Food.
th th st

Y NAME IS ALISON SHAW and I am a Trustee and the Press Officer of the DCFA. With a background of primary school teaching I was ordained in 2001 and since then have worked in the Dioceses of Truro and Exeter. Whilst working in North Cornwall I became involved in FoodBanks and helped set up and run a satellite branch of the highly busy Wadebridge FoodBank. As a church community we support the Plymouth FoodBank and I know the work they do here too is essential. Now, as priest-in-charge of St. Boniface Church in St. Budeaux, Im seeing at first hand the effects of second and third generation unemployment, the shocking issues of increasing food poverty and the resultant sense of low self esteem and hopelessness. The work of the DCFA is already making a difference to twelve organisations it is currently supplying and we look forward to a time when DCFA is able to secure premises, paid staff and a supply chain from the many local food producers and retailers who may wish to work with us. st Its truly unacceptable, that in this 21 century, huge quantities of food are wasted daily when people go hungry! Many things get people hot under the collar... lets protest about this... an issue which really matters and is a massive injustice in our society.

DCFA ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING AN OPEN INVITATION

HE DCFA AGM will be held at the Plymouth st Crown Centre at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, 1 November 2011. A rough programme will be something like this: 6 p.m. 6.30 p.m. Registration & Networking Welcome by the Chair Chairs Report, Treasurers Report Guest Speaker - Ms. Anna HOYLE. Strategic Development Manager, ECCVS Election of Officers, Any Other Business, Questions & Answers Refreshments & Networking

Come join DCFA!

Stop good food from ending up at landfill sites!

7.30 p.m.

Talk to DCFA on Facebook Follow DCFA on Twitter View DCFA on LinkedIn

Do please make a date in your diaries now and let Geoff know if you wish to attend! Our AGM is open to all to attend. In particular we should like to see the following in attendance: DCFA Trustees, DCFA Volunteers, DCFA Friends Members of the DCFA Exeter Working Group Members of the DCFA Truro Working Group As space is limited we should be most grateful if you let us know that you will be attending. Please contact Geoff at:

Contact the DCFA Newsletter Editor at DCFA... details at the top of Page 1.

saudigeoff@yahoo.co.uk or telephone him on (01752) 563800. Deadlines: Nominations to become an officer of DCFA (Trustee or Member) must be submitted to the DCFA Secretary th by not later than 12 noon on Tuesday, 18 October 2011.

ND OF THE SELL-BY DATE: Simpler labels to tackle 12billion annual food waste:

Five million tons of perfectly good produce binned every year. Use by labels will go only on food unsafe to eat after a certain date
th

DCFA TALKS & PRESENTATIONS

This article was published in the Daily Mail on Thursday, 15 September 2011 by Tamara Cohen and This Is Money Reporters.

CFA BOARD MEMBERS are now ready to deliver Talks to groups and organisations about the work of DCFA. This can be accompanied by a PowerPoint Presentation and a couple of short video films. We invariably include a discussion session afterwards and distribute leaflets, and Friends of DCFA Brochures. So if you are a school, or perhaps a church group or similar, why not contact Geoff and request a Talk?

PLYMOUTH SOCIAL ENTERPRISE NETWORK

CHRISTINE REID AND GEOFF READ attended a meeting of th PSEN on Tuesday, 13 September 2011 at Millfields HQ Business Centre in Union Street, Plymouth. A very worthwhile meeting and a very interesting Talk from Rachel PICKEN of MPAD about how social enterprises can use their ethical dimensions to boost public relations and how to use social impact to create great news stories. Perhaps you will now see an improvement in our Newsletters! Ed.

Sell-by dates on food labels are to be removed in a bid to help cut down the 12billion worth of good food which ends up in the bin each year. From now on, manufacturers will only be able to put use by or best before dates on food products. The new guidelines from the government mean that food products will no longer be able to use sell-by or display until labels. Instead they will only be allowed to put one date to help confused consumers distinguish between the two traditional dates. Ruling: From now on, manufacturers
will not be allowed to mislead customers into thinking their food is off.

OTHER NEWS

OAST TV VISITED PLYMOUTH. On the eve of the first Marine Management Organisation conference organised by the Plymouth Marine Sciences Partnership, CoastNet brought Miranda KRESTOVNIKOV and the Coast TV programme to kick off a debate about this future, starting with some stories of the making of the TV series and insights that Miranda has gained from the experience. The evening started at 6.30 p.m. with canaps and drinks followed by a debate at 7.30 th p.m. on Monday, 12 September 2011 in the Graduation Marquee on Plymouth Hoe. Christine REID and Geoff READ were most fortunate to be invited to represent DCFA at what turned out to be a most interesting evening!

ORNWALL Food & Drink Festival. Christine REID, Geoff READ and Gitty ANKERS spent some time talking to local food producers at this festival at Truro in September 2011. It was a very busy festival but they managed to place a few DCFA Brochures in strategic places! Find out more by visiting: www.cornwallfoodanddrink.co.uk.

An estimated five million tons of perfectly good produce worth 12billion is binned every year. The annual cost to a typical family is put at a staggering 680. The new rules issued today by the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (DEFRA) has been produced in consultation with supermarkets, food manufacturers, consumer groups, food law enforcement bodies and the Waste & Resources Action Programme (WRAP). Although agreement has been reached with manufacturers, ministers still need to thrash out similar rules for supermarket own-brand products. Environment Secretary Caroline SPELMAN said: 'We want to end the food labelling confusion and make it clear once and for all when food is good and safe to eat. 'This simpler and safer date labelling guide will help households cut down on the 12 billion Miss SPELMAN will announce worth of good food that ends up in the bin.' Most foods... such as tinned and dry goods, the move to help 'end food jams, pickles and snacks... carry a best before labelling date to indicate when they will no longer be at confusion'. their best but are still safe to eat. Use by labels will go only on food which is unsafe to eat after a certain date, such as soft cheese, meat, fish, eggs and ready meals. Instead of using sell by or display until dates, the food industry will be encouraged to use other measures... such as colour coding... to tell supermarkets how long to keep produce on the shelf. Campaigners have been lobbying for several ears to change the food labelling system which was introduced in 1980. Liz REDMOND of the Food Standards Agency said: There is a lot of confusion among customers about date marks. A number of different dates can be found on our food, so we need to make sure that everyone knows the difference between them. We always emphasise that use by dates are the most important, as these relate to food safety.

Contact the DCFA Newsletter Editor at DCFA... details at the top of Page 1.

This new guidance will give greater clarity to the food industry on which date mark should be used on their products while maintaining consumer protection. The waste reduction body WRAP says 8.3million tons of food and drink is thrown away each year, of which 60%, or 5.3million tons, is avoidable. Every day 1.3million unopened yoghurt pots are dumped along with 5million potatoes, a million loaves of bread, 440,000 ready meals, 5,500 chickens and a million slices of ham. Much of this food ends up in landfill and puts a drain on the economy in terms of production and transport. A survey last year for supermarket chain Morrisons found 55% of shoppers throw away food which is past its best before date even though it is still safe to eat. Miss SPELMAN said earlier this year: I am dismayed so much food goes to waste. If the date labels are part of the problem, its one thing we should be able to improve. Critics say part of the problem is that supermarkets offer buy-one-get-one-free deals on products with a short shelf life, including fruit and vegetables, which means that shoppers throw away large amounts. DEFRA said consumers would find the new system easier to understand and that deciding when to eat foods after the best before date was common sense. While the manufacturers have pledged to follow the guidelines, there were fears supermarkets would dig in their heels over display before dates on own brand products. The British Retail Consortium, which represents major retailers, expressed doubts as to whether the new rules would help customers better understand date marking. Spokesman Andrew OPIE said: If the Government really wants to make a difference to reducing food waste it should be educating consumers about the two basic terms... use by and best before. This system is carefully used by retailers and it isnt complicated. Helping consumers understand that food past its best before date can still be eaten or cooked could contribute to reducing food waste and saving people money. The Government should be spreading that message, not focusing on retail practices. Barbara GALLANI of the Food & Drink Federation said: DEFRAS guidance on the application of date marks on food and drink products will provide an additional tool for manufacturers to use to help consumers in their fight against food waste.

However she also claimed that consumers were still confused by the difference between use by and best before and called for measures to improve consumer understanding. Scientists at the University of Strathclyde are working on intelligent food wrapping which changes colour when the contents go bad. More... How to drastically slash your food bill with easy changes Food labels use 'poetic license' to fool shoppers To read more on this subject please click on this link.

IAZZA MARKET A HIT With Public. This article was th published in the Plymouth Herald on Monday, 19 September 2011: A CITY farmers' market has been hailed as a success after some traders sold out of their local produce. Mouth-watering pastries and preserves, local cider and eye-catching jewellery were all on offer for the many LOCAL PRODUCE: shoppers who visited the market on Saturday. Lynda Hickery from Ant-Em's Bakery. Previously situated in New George Street, the stalls took up residence in the Piazza with organisers hoping it will be the first step in reintroducing the attraction to the city's central thoroughfare. "It went very well and we have had great feedback from the traders and public," said Clint Jones, Plymouth City Centre Manager. "It is definitely something that people want back and the traders all had good days." A total of 15 traders set up shop for the market which is hoped will return as a fortnightly event. "We want everyone to enjoy it," said Clint. "And it doesn't have to be just be once a fortnight, you can enjoy local produce every day at the Plymouth City Market."

HE SHEKINAH MISSION. John HAMBLIN has reported that at long last their new web site is up and running. Do please take a look at: www.shekinahmission.co.uk

Below: Esme Goss and DCFA See more at: Photobucket.com and DCFA FB Page.
Original photographs courtesy of George TRICKER.

Contact the DCFA Newsletter Editor at DCFA... details at the top of Page 1.