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London Stansted Airport has received recognition for its support of foodbanks in local communities, at the Green Apple Awards for Environmental Best Practice.
The airport received a ‘gold’ award for a scheme which began as a trial in 2017, ‘recycling’ non-perishable food, drink and toiletry items which had to be surrendered by passengers due to hand luggage security restrictions by giving them to local foodbanks across Uttlesford, Essex and East Hertfordshire.
Now a permanent initiative, it has contributed to supporting more than 3,000 local families to date and is run entirely by airport staff who volunteer time to sort and transport donations.
Through donations from the airport, other businesses and the community, food banks supply three days’ nutritionally balanced food and support to people in crisis. In the first three months, Stansted’s collection scheme donated 2.4 tonnes, or five per cent of the total collected for the entire year.
Stansted’s Environmental Manager Martin Churley collected the award at the special event held at the Houses of Parliament this week.
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London Stansted Airport has invested £30,000 in recycling equipment and, alongside volunteers, identifies food products and toiletries which could easily and safely be given away to support the vulnerable. The variety of products we collect varies hugely, from shampoo, olive oil through to cake and coffee. The most commonly collected products are marmite, peanut butter and jam.
We also worked with the Department for Transport and our security teams to ensure the process was considered safe and signed off by Government. As well as supporting local families, the scheme helps our staff stay connected with the communities around the airport.
Martin Churley, Environment Manager at London Stansted Airport
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