Manchester community group continues to fight against food poverty 

A Manchester based community group has launched a new community kitchen in the city centre in its fight against food poverty.

Bounceback Food CIC is opening a new Community Kitchen in the city centre this month in partnership with Altogether Otherwise.  

Bounceback Food CIC is a social enterprise which has been tackling food poverty in the North West and nationwide since 2014. 

Their mission is to connect communities while delivery food to those who need it. To support winter operations and the kitchens opening, Bounceback Food has also started a Crowdfunder to help deliver meals, cookery workshops and core running costs.

Duncan Swainsbury, founder and managing director of Bounceback Food, said: “Bounceback Food CIC is tackling food poverty and food waste across the UK with our community chefs, who alongside volunteers run our community kitchens and community cookery school workshops and learning programmes on behalf of our beneficiaries.

“To support our fundraising we have published four cookbooks, run cookery workshops and supper club nights that are open to the public. We crowdfund to secure pledges for additional meals and work with corporate partners that sponsor our podcast, organise team building events and use our catering services.”

The need for another community kitchen

Their first community kitchen was opened in 2023 in Altrincham. Kitchens provide nutritious meals all year round for people living in food poverty, cookery workshops and various different hosted events.

Duncan Swainsbury commented in the latest news letter by Bounceback Food CIC: “We couldn’t think of a more exciting project to kickstart our 10th anniversary year and scale up our social impact in Greater Manchester.

“The central Manchester Community Kitchen will significantly increase our capacity to deliver meals and cooking opportunities to our beneficiaries year round and is the blueprint of what we want to achieve in every major city across the UK by 2029.”

Vital partnerships

Bounceback Food works in partnership with organisations and charities across the UK. FareShare Greater Manchester is in partnership with Bounceback Food to give food to different charities and people who vitally need it in the current cost-of-living crisis. 

In FareShare’s most recent 2024–25 Impact Report, the organisation said it redistributed around 4.72 million meals to charities, schools and community groups across Greater Manchester last year and “save 2,000 tonnes of good food from going to waste”. Their partnership is just one example of the work being done in Manchester to tackle food insecurities.

Bounceback Food provide hot meals to people and families struggling to access regular food. This new community kitchen is another step in tackling the nation’s food poverty crisis.

More information can be found on their website: https://bouncebackfood.co.uk