Do Good, Feel Good: A Taste of Volunteering at the Real Junk Food Hub
Volunteers are vital, and throughout 2025, some of our team at East Brighton Trust have been casting a light on the brilliant community groups that exist in East and North Brighton by volunteering and writing all about the experience.
There are so many benefits to volunteering, and by helping to support worthwhile causes and people in need, you’re almost certainly doing yourself a favour as well as making a difference locally.
Connecting with your community by volunteering can mean learning new skills, gaining knowledge, and can give a new sense of purpose and belonging, while improving your health and wellbeing.
Last week, it was fantastic to spend time at the Real Junk Food Project Hub in Bevendean helping to set up the shop, and gaining insight into its mission.
Welcomed with genuine warmth by Jacq, one of the hub managers, and the committed Tuesday volunteer team, I was immediately struck by the incredible abundance of great quality surplus food while touring the site.
The hub intercepts food that would otherwise be discarded and sent to landfill, with virtually all of it still perfectly good to eat. With donations from brands like M&S, Waitrose and Higgidy Pies, as well as crates of fresh produce originally destined for some of Brighton’s top restaurants donated by Menu Partners, it was both heartening and eye-opening to see just how much premium food is saved from waste.
It’s staggering to think that while 8.4 million people in the UK face food poverty, over 9 million tonnes of food are wasted each year. That is enough food to feed 30 million people.
Jacq, who’s worked at the hub since the end of last year told me more about the hub; “It’s a place of redistribution of surplus food and open to anyone who’s looking for a wide variety of quality produce as well as frozen & chilled goods that change daily,”
Jacq spoke about how it’s important that the hub is accessible to everyone as well as being inclusive for those who might face barriers to accessing fresh and affordable food.
“Anyone can shop with us, and we are in contact with support workers & carers across the city who regularly bring clients, family members and friends. We can support everyone, which includes those with limited cooking facilities, large families, and those who might have dietary restrictions.”
Pitching in with the team was uplifting and rewarding, as everyone helped to unpack, clean, stack and display crate after crate of fresh, delicious food and set up the shop, which opens every weekday from 1:30pm to 3:30pm on a pay-as-you-feel basis.
The energy and dedication from the entire team was evident, with everyone working hard to make the hub the best it could be. Liam, one of the volunteers, shared what drives his involvement at the hub; “There’s a community spirit here and I like being able to help out. The beautiful thing is seeing the people who benefit from this project and to see the difference that we can make by being useful to society and feeding people. We’re creating a community that’s been lost over the years.”
As well as feeding over 100 households a week, the hub also supplies the Real Junkfood Project cafés that operate from the Fitzherbert, St Lukes, and Hollingdean Community Centre on a pay-as-you-feel basis, feeding even more communities with surplus food.
At the hub, there is a deep understanding and empathy for the challenges many households face, ensuring that members of the community don’t go hungry and that barriers to accessing food are lifted when they need to be.
Jacq shares that many local residents have been hit hard by recent benefits issues, leaving them with no choice but to turn to the hub for food support to get through each week while they wait up to five weeks for their first Universal Credit payment after migrating over from Employment and Support Allowance.
Spending a few hours with the team at the hub was both moving and inspiring, highlighting the vital role it plays in supporting so many communities locally, and in the words of The Real Junk Food Project, feeding bellies not bins.
If you would like to volunteer at the Real Junkfood Project Hub, you can contact them at volunteer@realjunkfoodbrighton.co.uk
