Shambala Festival workers join forces with food charity to feed the south west’s most vulnerable

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Food charity FareShare South West have smashed their target of delivering food for 1million meals in just three months to the region’s most vulnerable as part of their winter operation FoodStock 2020, with help from Kambe Event’s festival team.

Having successfully achieved their target ahead of time, the decision was made by FareShare South West to extend the FoodStock 2020 operation until the end of March, with continued help from the Kambe Events team and with a brand-new target of food for 2.5million meals.

Kambe Events Ltd are a Bristol based events company with over 20 years’ experience in the festival sector. They’re best known for their flagship event, Shambala Festival – which was forced to cancel in 2020, due to the ongoing situation with Covid-19.

Rather than twiddling their thumbs and waiting for normality to resume, the Kambe Events team have found a way to diversify and put their skills to good use, whilst doing something incredibly important for the most critically vulnerable in the South West.

It was back in November 2020 that FareShare South West enlisted Kambe Events to work with them on many important operational elements of FoodStock 2020: a campaign to build a stockpile of emergency food and the infrastructure to deliver it to those in need, over a very difficult winter.

The Kambe Team have been supporting on the ground in FareShare South West’s Ashton Gate warehouse in Bristol, managing warehouse operations, volunteers, goods in, storage, dispatch and health and safety. The warehouse operates under strict social distancing guidelines, with PPE and food safety measures in place to ensure everybody is kept safe.

‘Festival management skills are infinitely transferrable to an operation like this…’

The team have discovered that festival and event management skills are infinitely transferrable to an operation such as FoodStock 2020. Whilst a food parcel warehouse may seem a far cry from a field full of thousands of revelers, both require swift problem solving, tip top organizational skills and the ability to effectively manage an army of volunteers.

Food parcels packed as part of the operation help bridge the gap caused by this crisis, acting as an emergency food supplier to hundreds of frontline organisations from food banks to schools to homeless charities. For those struggling to make ends meet, these food parcels provide fresh fruit and veg and hearty ingredients for hot, healthy meals.

“My usual role at Shambala Festival is very busy and fast-paced which I love, so when we were forced to cancel, I struggled with feeling at a loose end. Getting stuck into FoodStock 2020 has been so rewarding – not only am I busy once again, it’s fantastic to know we are making a positive, tangible difference to the lives of people who are struggling”Christine Dent, Kambe Events Ltd

“The input from Kambe Events Ltd has been and will continue to be significant for the whole of the South West region during this very difficult winter”Julian Mines, FareShare South West CEO

“I am overwhelmed with what we got today. These boxes really help me and my family and it’s very much appreciated”Food parcel recipient

Both Kambe Events and FareShare South West are confident that the new target of delivering food for 2.5million meals by March 2021 is achievable, and the general public can help. Even the smallest donations to FoodStock 2020 make a huge difference:

  • £1 covers four hearty meals for somebody in need
  • £5 covers making a full family’s food parcel
  • £10 covers 40 meals for a vulnerable person this winter
  • £25 covers the cost of delivering food for 100 children’s meals
  • Donations can be made here: https://faresharesouthwest.org.uk/foodstock-2020-shambala/
Sam Hyland
Author: Sam Hyland

Sam is the assistant content manager for Event Industry News (EIN). Sam is involved in publishing news stories, videos and podcasts. Sam also collates the latest stories for the EIN e-newsletter. If you have a press release or story you think we might be interested to know about please email editor@eventindustrynews.com

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