A Goldthorpe Community Shop for all of us

It can’t have escaped your notice this week that a new members-only supermarket has opened in Goldthorpe, near Barnsley in South Yorkshire. The aim is to prevent food poverty by making groceries available at up to 70% off the usual price, and shoppers have to live in a specific postcode and be on a very low income to apply to join.

The food includes mis-labelled but safe goods, seasonal ingredients, supermarket overstocks, and food that’s past its ‘best before’ but not its ‘use by’ dates. There’s been a massive amount of media coverage, and an enormous social media response.

People have been saying all kinds of things, some nasty, some nice. For example:

• “It’s a good idea that will help a lot of people who are suffering”
• “It’s second class shopping that stigmatises the customers”
• “It’s not fair to make things so easy for people on benefits”

But whatever the stance people have taken, the phrase I’ve seen most often is this:

“I wish there was something like this near me, and I wish I could use this type of shop.”

What they might not know is that there already is a shop like this, and it’s been around for about five years. Anyone can use it, the savings are typically between 50 and 70%, and they deliver right to your house. They’re called Approved Food, and I’ve recently started using them myself.

In a press release last night, Dan Cluderay, the founder of approvedfood.co.uk, said:

“The Community Shop is a fantastic idea, and it makes common sense as a solution for food waste. It’s unfortunate that these goods and savings are not available to the whole country. It’s not just the poor who are feeling the pinch…and I understand the frustration that is felt by the rest of the nation. Approved Food has been offering savings of up to 70% since 2008 and is open to everyone, everywhere regardless of their income.”

If you’d like to read more about this, you can read the press release online.

And a quick announcement

Now’s a good time to tell you that I’m going to be working with Approved Food in the next few weeks and months. Keep an eye out for some nicely-priced recipes and other money saving tips with that cheeky Golightly touch.