Non-profit providing meals for NHS workers appeals for food from local suppliers

Hospitality for Heroes, a non-profit that is providing thousands of meals for frontline workers at London NHS hospitals, is seeking fresh fruit and vegetables as well as storecupboard goods from local suppliers.

Launched amid the coronavirus outbreak, the group has already delivered more than 10,000 healthy, restaurant-quality meals to the NHS with the help of furloughed restaurant chefs, but founder Oli Coles says more food supplies are needed.

“One of the Head Chefs volunteering for us is Sally Abe (Head Chef of Michelin-starred Harwood Arms). She and her husband Matt Abe (Restaurant Gordon Ramsey) are doing hundreds of meals daily for the homeless, elderly and the NHS, through us. She has just asked whether I know anyone who can donate store cupboard goods and fresh fruit and veg at short notice,” Oli says.

Hospitality for Heroes is able to make use of stock that many producers and suppliers are in danger of having to discard due to a lack of demand. “If we can find those foods, we can certainly put them to good use in the kitchens in Earls Court,” adds Rupert Parsons, owner of Womersley Foods.

In just three weeks, Hospitality for Heroes has raised more than £30,000. The non-profit also has plans to publish a recipe book to raise additional funds to feed the NHS using video submissions from well-known chefs.

“NHS COVID-19 frontline workers are not only doing a remarkable and courageous job, they’re also leaving their shifts exhausted, arriving at empty supermarkets in need of healthy food and rest,” Oli writes on the non-profit’s GoFundMe page.

“Restaurant Chefs are being paid 80% of their wages and have free time. Restaurant Suppliers also need supporting and have the produce available. Including the vulnerable and NHS staff, our country now has approximately three million people that are struggling to access healthy food every day. We, as the collective hospitality industry, are here to help and we thank you for your kind donations.”