In a powerful display of community and compassion, New Covent Garden Market (NCGM) partnered with the food redistribution charity City Harvest to support the annual Harvest Festival service held at Southwark Cathedral on 6th October.
The event highlighted the growing issue of food insecurity in London, with Sarah Calcutt, Non-Executive Director of the Covent Garden Market Authority (CGMA) and Chief Executive of City Harvest, delivering a moving address.
During the service, Calcutt emphasised the harsh realities faced by many London households, particularly the 20% living in food insecurity. "City Harvest delivers 1.2 million meals a month to the capital's hungry, and increasingly across the country," Calcutt explained.
The charity, which has seen rapid expansion over the last decade, continues to battle overwhelming demand. "It hasn't been enough, so we continue to grow. We could double in size tomorrow and there would still be unmet need," Calcutt said. She starkly pointed out the prevalence of food poverty, noting: "Today, there are twice as many food banks [in Great Britain] than there are McDonald's outlets. There are as many food banks as there are branches of Tesco."
Highlighting the personal struggles of those affected, she added: "Half of London's single-parent households are in food poverty. Just think how desperate that must feel, how precarious your life is, in every moment. Think how often that parent goes without so that their children can eat. That is not sustainable. That is not dignity. That is not acceptable."
Following the service, a reception was held where CGMA Chair Wanda Goldwag OBE, standing beside a display of produce donated by NCGM traders, echoed Calcutt’s sentiments. "I thought what you said was very powerful," Goldwag said. Reflecting on her own experience of hunger in her early twenties, she recalled scrambling to cash a traveller’s cheque to afford food for the day.
"For many people, that one day of hunger can stretch into days, weeks, and sometimes years," Goldwag noted. "Frankly, it's a disgrace in the modern world that this is the case in this country, and that's why the work of City Harvest is so important. We are as proud as possible to be part of this with you, and I thank every one of the staff and volunteers at City Harvest for their work."
As the Harvest Festival celebrated the generosity of NCGM traders and the critical work of City Harvest, the message was clear—much more needs to be done to address food insecurity. With partnerships like these, there is hope for a future where no family in London or beyond has to go hungry.
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