Sharing the LOVE at St Thomas Community Food Hub

Aim

Support LOVE Food to grow our work at St Thomas Community Food Hub & reach more people through food, community and environmental activities.

Thanks so much for your interest in our campaign!

If you are new to our work then let us tell you a little bit about who we are and what we do:

LOVE Food CIC is a community-based organisation dedicated to increasing access to, and promoting the benefits of Local, Organic, Vegan, Ethical food for animals, health and the environment.  

Last year we set up a new community food hub in St Thomas, Exeter where we organise food activities to:

• bring the local community together
• help people eat better
• address food poverty
• reduce food waste

All of LOVE Food CIC's activities focus on healthy, easy, affordable, tasty vegan food. Eating plant-based not only offers a wide range of health benefits, but can also help the environment and reduce our carbon footprint.

What we have been up to:

It is just over one year since we got the keys to what was just another empty shop front on the high street. Through the power of volunteers and our community, the gift economy (along with not being afraid to ask for help!) we launched as a bright and welcoming community hub less than 2 months later. 

Since starting activities in July 2024 and opening fully in September 2024, the hub has blossomed into a wonderfully well used space – hosting:

• a community fridge, with free food for all
• a regular pay-what-you-can lunch club
• practical cooking sessions
• foraging walks
• an apple juicing project
• swap shop with free toys, books, clothes
• arts & craft sessions
• coffee mornings
• pop up meals, and 
• other food initiatives and special events.

All of our activities use surplus food, which would otherwise go to waste, and we get most of our food from Fare Share South West,  Exeter Food Action, Essentials Bank and Shillingford Organics. We also get fruit and veg donated by community growing projects including  Zero Mile Gardens, St Thomas Community Garden, Devon Dig & Donate,  Sweetpea Smallholdings, the Happiness Outdoors Project (pictured above) as well as gardeners and allotment holders.

We give out this food for free directly to local people via our community fridge, or turn it into delicious meals via our lunch club, cooking classes, and surplus soup making sessions.

Over the last year we have rescued around 100kg of surplus food per week. We estimate that the surplus food that we redistribute offsets 10 tonnes of carbon emissions per year which is the equivalent of driving a petrol car 1.25 times around the earth’s circumference or equivalent to the amount of CO2 absorbed by 500 mature trees in a year. 

We have run a wide variety of free and very low cost community cooking sessions including:

• Energy Saving Cooking using air fryers, slow cookers & hay boxes
• Zero Waste Mexican cooking
• Food Rescue Cooking Session using surplus veg
• Chutney making
• Ready Steady Veg! 
• An Introduction to Home cooking
• Men’s Cooking Course
• Vegan quiche and Summer Salads
• Family Baking Sessions

Results of our feedback have also found that 100% of participants enjoyed the activities at the food hub and would recommend them to others, and said that is had encouraged them to eat more fruit and veg and plant based food, and had a positive impact on their health and wellbeing, as well as feeling more connected to their community.

We have also organised special events in partnership with other organisations including: 

• Exeter University 
• RAMM
• Exeter Community Initiatives
• Organic Arts
• Exeter Seed Bank
• Women & Climate
• Shillingford Organics
• Exeter Community Energy
• Wellbeing Exeter
• Hubbub / Innocent Smoothies
• Devon Co-op Community
• St Thomas Community Garden

Working in partnership means that the work of Love Food can reverberate across the city, as demonstrated by this observation: ‘Love Food CIC is an asset to the local community. I have been able to see staff from our local NHS Trust join the sessions and discover the joy of healthy, sustainable and local vegan food’.

Photo credit - Jordan Killiard

Our impact:

Altogether over the last year, we have run over 30 practical food related events for the community, along with serving countless meals. We have welcomed over 1000 people through the door including older people, families with babies and young children, those with disabilities or long term health conditions, people from culturally diverse communities, pupils from local schools and colleges, low income households, and more.

The significance of the impact of the work at the food hub can be demonstrated by the following user testimonials: 

• 'It’s brilliant to have this space so close by. The courses and events are brilliant in themselves but the presence of this venue (and Maresa's inspiring enthusiasm) make it a local force for good on many levels.'
• 'I feel more connected to the local community including the public, but also food producers and sellers. Gives hope that huge global problems (unhealthy and unsustainable food systems) can be tackled with local solutions.'

Over 30 people have volunteered for the hub and 12 of those are regular volunteers who help to keep our busy schedule of activities safe, fun and friendly.  

A couple of our volunteers had the following to say about their experiences:

• 'It’s great to be part of the Love Food family, it provides me with multiple opportunities to be proactive and make a difference in my community.'
• 'I enjoy helping out with the lunch club. It’s great to work with the community, get to know the people in your neighbourhood and share a very tasty meal.'
• 'Doing my weekly volunteering at Love Food has helped my mental illness and makes Thursdays a day to look forward to.'

Photo credit - Not Half Media

Through our core activities, LOVE Food CIC has created a vibrant, inclusive hub where food brings people together, supports wellbeing, and builds resilience:

• Our Community Fridge reduces food waste and ensures surplus food reaches those who need it most, helping over a hundred households each month.
• Our Pay-What-You-Can Lunch Club offers nutritious, affordable meals in a welcoming setting, reducing food insecurity and social isolation, especially for older people and those on low incomes.
• Our Cooking Sessions empower people with essential food skills, boost confidence in the kitchen, and encourage healthier, more sustainable eating habits.
• Our Foraging Walks & Apple Juicing Project reconnect people with nature and promote seasonal and local food.
• Our Swap Shop supports families by reducing financial pressure, encouraging re-use, and building a circular, sharing economy.
• Our Arts & Craft Sessions & Coffee Mornings create informal spaces for social connection, creativity, and improved mental wellbeing.
• Our Pop-up Meals and Food Events celebrate culture, community and plant-based food in joyful, accessible ways, often in collaboration with other local organisations.

Altogether, these initiatives help tackle food poverty, reduce waste, strengthen local networks, and support people’s physical and mental health — all through the power of community and good food.

Why we are fundraising:

Most of our work is offered for free or at very low cost and we want to keep it that way. A crowdfunding boost will enable us to offer an increased variety of sessions on this basis over the next year.

Like any community enterprise, we are funded in a variety of ways – whether that’s bringing in income from hiring our space to a wide variety of groups, running paid-for cooking classes or applying for grant funding. We currently have grants from the National Lottery, Hubbub, Exeter City Council and Devon Community Foundation/Devon County Council.

Additional funding from our crowd of supporters – along with the match funding that this will unlock – will enable us to continue and expand our activities, which may include:

• Continuing to run activities to reduce food waste e.g. our community fridge, regular pay-what-you-can lunch club, cooking sessions, apple juicing project, swap shop and more. 
• Providing more informal opportunities to help people to connect, e.g. coffee mornings, and food & environment focussed arts & crafts.
• Running volunteer cooking sessions to use up surplus food to make soups and ready meals for the fridge, and cakes for the food hub. 
• Cooking sessions and other activities for children and young people of all ages, including neurodiverse children.
• Healthy eating sessions for people with health conditions e.g. Type 2 Diabetes.
• Organising foraging walks in local green spaces and visits to farms and community gardens, so people can benefit from being active in nature.

How you can help

There are three simple ways to get involved and support our project:

1. Make a donation

Every pledge gets us closer to our goal. Early support can help build momentum and inspire others to give too. All donations are match funded up to £250, so anything you donate will be doubled. 

2. Spread the word

Share our project with friends, family and your wider network. The more people we reach, the more likely we are to succeed.

3. Volunteer with us

If you’d like to get involved, we’d love to hear from you. Please get in touch through the ‘Contact’ section using the subject 'I want to volunteer my time or expertise' on our project page.

This project successfully funded on 20th August 2025