Nando's reveals new food donation programme

Nando’s has launched a food donation initiative, alongside an employment programme which aims to help vulnerable young people and families across the UK.

Fuel Your Future is designed to positively impact the lives of disadvantaged young people, and is an evolution of existing work the restaurant carries out with charity Family Action and the HeadStart programme (which supports young people into employment, with more than 200 jobs created so far).

With job opportunities on hold following the effects of Covid-19 on the hospitality industry, Nando’s is shifting its focus to food donations alongside its work with charitable partners.

As a result, Nando’s restaurants across London, Birmingham, the north east and east Midlands are serving up free meals once a week to vulnerable young people and their families.

With the number of free meals served doubling week on week since the scheme began in June, and with more Nando’s locations participating in the coming weeks, the business is aiming to donate more than 15,000 free meals to disadvantaged young people across the UK by the end of the trial period.

Fuel Your Future is hoped to roll-out nationally over time and ultimately donate 500,000 meals a year.

Supporting young people

By partnering with Family Action again on Fuel Your Future, Nando’s can identify young people who are currently eligible for Free School Meals, coming out of care or are young carers themselves.

Each local Nando’s restaurant can then connect with these young people, and their families, so they can pick up a meal once a week.

The programme builds on the brand’s existing No Chuckin’ Our Chicken food donation programme, which has donated more than 2.3m meals to homeless charities and food banks since it started in 2013.

Since lockdown began Nando’s has also donated more than 150,000 meals to local charities, the NHS and FareShare in partnership with Deliveroo.

Looking forward, Nando’s has ambitions to create in the region of 500 new job placements across the business through Family Action’s, HeadStart programme, and Nando’s other partnerships with Springboard, Remit, The Forward Trust and The Shaw Trust.

In the short term, there will be a stronger focus not just job outcomes but also work experience opportunities and mentoring for young people across the Nando’s business.