Food service faces 'crunch time' in new home search

The hub said it feeds 750 people a week

A service that resells supermarket food at a lower price has said it is "crunch time" as it searches for a new home.

Wycombe Food Hub in Buckinghamshire was initially set up in response to Covid, but it has since evolved into a community service supporting about 750 people each week.

The hub has been told it must vacate its premises by the end of the year due to the closure and redevelopment of the Chilterns Shopping Centre, High Wycombe, where it is currently based.

It hopes to open a store on the High Street, subject to signing contracts, but will need £100,000 to make the move possible.

Visitors to Wycombe Food Hub can fill a basket with as much as they want for £6

The organisation was founded by independent councillors Kahlil Ahmed, Trevor Snaith and Bob Kin who died in 2022.

Mr Snaith said the rent for the new site would be £50,000 a year, while an online fundraiser has collected about £25,000 so far.

"What we're about to do, is a massive leap," he said. "It means we have to bring in a considerable amount of funding to be able to fit the shop out, maintain the shop, and put all the extra things in."

The hub works by collecting food due to be thrown out by other businesses and selling it to customers who pay £6 to fill a basket.

It claims to have prevented hundreds of tonnes of food from going to landfill and also runs a low-cost community bazaar offering clothes, toys, books and household goods.

He said: "We are feeding 750 people a week that come through this shop, and these are people that can be ranging from ex forces, people that cannot get benefits and people that if they lost their job, they are two pay cheques away from needing help.

"Our mission is simple – no one should go hungry, and no good food should go to waste."

The service was started by Trevor Snaith (pictured), Kahlil Ahmed and Bob Kin

Mr Ahmed added he wanted to give back to the town that has given him so much, he said that he "cannot stand" to see food go to waste.

He praised the hard work and dedication of volunteers, saying it is their commitment that keeps the hub running.

He urged anyone who is able to help secure the hub's future to get in touch.