Episode 52: Nikki | City Harvest - a podcast by Elizabeth Kerr and Kat Wood

For this episode, we chatted to Nikki, COO of City Harvest. City Harvest are a London-based charity who redistribute surplus food to over 300 organisations, food banks and charities every single week. 

We debunk the myth that surplus food is only for the homeless. 1 in 4 Londoners are dealing with food poverty and City Harvest are acting as a crucial connection between retailers and the organisations who are feeding the hungry. Nikki talks us through the story of City Harvest so far; starting with 1 van and three passionate individuals, the small team have built the organisation to an enormous scale - at the time of writing they rescue and deliver 70,000 meals every week. Having reached this milestone in such a short space of time, City Harvest are working to restructure and expand the operation so they can meet ever increasing demand. Recently appointed to the role as COO, Nikki brings with her a wealth of experience in the food sector and we discuss how she is channelling this into her new role. City Harvest totally relies on funding for their operation - they receive food donations and distribute at no cost to the organisations that are receiving the food. We chat about the different types of funding they receive including one funny story about an enormous cheque from Metallica!

There's a real buzz around City Harvest and the work that they do. We chat about the charm of City Harvest, how it draws individuals in who stay committed to working, volunteering and going the extra mile to ensure everyone hears about them.

We recorded this episode in the summer and City Harvest had just hit a huge milestone of 6 million meals donated. We are now just a few months on and they have just celebrated their 7 millionth meal! This just goes to show the huge difference they are making and how rapidly they are growing. 

Find City Harvest on Instagram @cityharvestlondon or via their website www.cityharvest.org.uk where you can find out more about donating and volunteering.

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