Community pantry issues plea over broken freezer

Toby Lindsay-White said the Project40Seven freezer was no longer working

A community pantry that lost £1,500-worth of food in a power cut has appealed for help after discovering its freezer had broken.

Electricity failed just after midnight on Monday at Project40Seven, in Leiston, Suffolk, which runs a community hub and social supermarket to support about 700 households in the area.

Co-director Toby Lindsay-White said staff were forced to chuck away hundreds of pounds-worth of chilled and frozen food that was no longer safe to eat.

"Now we need to focus on rebuilding, acquiring a new freezer, building the stock back up," he said.

The freezer is out of action following the power cut

"It may be that we can go through insurance to do that - however, the timeframe is not beneficial to the members of our local community."

He said the not-for-profit organisation was looking for someone who could donate a commercial glass-fronted freezer, while urging people to donate frozen food and chilled goods once its facilities were fully back up and running.

UK Power Networks said the electrical fault was caused by a problem with an underground cable.

Mr Lindsay-White said the company had offered it some support.

Power was restored to the hub on Monday evening, but staff found the freezer would no longer switch on.

It will cost up to £3,500 to buy a new freezer and about £200 to dispose of the old one.

Mr Lindsay-White said the community hub spent £1,500 each week on buying mostly chilled food, as well as receiving donations from the charity Fareshare.

"It's taking time away from other things we should be doing, but as with everything we'll carry on regardless," he said.

"We're operating as a social supermarket, so trying to provide more range than you'd find at a foodbank.

"Between the chilled and frozen foods, it makes up about two-thirds [of stock]... because it's more pricey for people to get hold of.”

UK Power Networks said in a statement: "We would like to apologise to customers in Leiston High Street for several power interruptions on Monday 15 June.

"Our engineers excavated and fixed an underground cable fault, restoring power to the cafe by 7.10pm on Monday. Our advisors had kept customers updated on progress and in recognition of the impact the power cut had on the community we made a goodwill gesture to the charity."

It added: "For domestic properties, freezers keep food cold for 24-48 hours and business customers who rely on power for commercial reasons can claim on their insurance."