A STALL which provides free food from supermarkets to prevent it going to waste was inundated with supplies after Christmas.

The Zero Waste Stall in Ross-on-Wye’s Gloucester Road was weighed down with potatoes, apples, Brussels sprouts, tomatoes, bread, yogurts, mini muffins and passata and appealed to people to come and help themselves.

Volunteers at the stall, which celebrated its first birthday in November, collect food that is near or at its best-before date from supermarkets and outlets like Morrisons, Aldi, Sainsbury’s, the Co-op, the One Stop, Applegreen and the Community Garden, while donations have also been received from St Joseph’s Primary.

Volunteer Dene Godfrey said last Thursday: "We’ve never had so much on the stall and it all needs to be eaten before the chickens get it!

"Please come down and take as much as you can use and tell your friends and neighbours about us.

"It seems that quite a few people think that this stall is exclusively for people on benefits or low incomes but, whilst they are the ones who would ideally benefit most, the main point of the stall is to reduce waste, no matter how wealthy you are.

"Please don’t think that because you can afford to buy your food that this stall is not for you - it’s for everyone who hates food going to waste."

Nothing is unused, as anything that goes past its sell-by date feeds the chickens on a local farm.

And ahead of New Year, Dene jokingly suggested a use for a bag of potatoes

"A great hangover cure is to take 5kg of potatoes from the Zero Waste Stall, boil and mash them and eat them all in one sitting, so make sure you have enough free potatoes in time for New Year’s Day!"

In its first year, the Zero Waste Stall gave away a huge 21.5 tonnes of food for free which would otherwise have gone to landfill.

It has had 7,000 customer visits and received £1,600 in donations, while more than 90 per cent of all Ross’s retail food surplus is now used instead of being wasted.

Dene added: "Like all new startups, it took time to gather full momentum, but we anticipate even higher numbers in 2022."

For more information about the stall and opening times, go to www.facebook.com/Zero-Waste-Stall-101041668532996