If you’ve ever bought surplus vegetables from a Food Works market, enjoyed one of their chef-prepared Just Meals, or grown herbs in a school garden supported by their team, you’ve played a part in this ten-year journey. From humble beginnings as a pop-up café serving intercepted food, Food Works has grown into one of the most visible forces reshaping how Sheffield eats. With locations across the city and several partnerships with other food-led organisations, it has been built by thousands of volunteers over the years. In fact, it was volunteering on the Food Works farm that led me to get involved in ShefFood in 2021.
To mark the occasion, Food Works is launching Our Food Works, a beautifully curated anniversary book filled with stories, recipes, and reflections from the past decade. But more than a celebration of their achievements, the book is a rallying cry for the future, and the organisation needs your help to make it happen. A crowdfunder is now live to support the publication and to seed the next phase of Food Works’ mission: building a food system that connects, nourishes, and regenerates.
Food Works started life in 2015 as The Real Junk Food Project Sheffield, inspired by similar grassroots movements tackling food waste. Their first pop-up café opened in Sharrow in the summer of 2015, and from there they expanded rapidly, opening new cafés, launching a catering operation, and eventually moving into their own warehouse in Burngreave thanks to early social investment.
Back then, the focus was simple but effective: intercept surplus food that would otherwise go to waste and turn it into nutritious meals for the community. But as the city’s needs changed, so did Food Works.
“When we rebranded to Food Works just before the pandemic, it marked a shift from shouting about the problem to building real, tangible solutions,” says CEO Rene Meijer. “We’ve always believed that good food should be for everyone, and that it should be kind to the planet, too.”
That belief was put to the test during COVID. When cafés and catering were paused, Food Works pivoted rapidly to home-delivered meals and community food access. At the same time, they broke ground on their first growing site at the Green Estate, literally planting the seeds for what would become a central pillar of their work: community food growing.
Now, ten years in, Food Works is far more than a food waste campaign. It’s an alternative approach for a better food system, one that Sheffield is already starting to realise. Their “Just Meals” programme provides convenient, zero-waste meals through a network of over 20 local partners, including food banks and hospitals. Their growing projects, including the revitalised Norton Nursery, support over 35 schools in Sheffield to grow their own food, with another 60 schools outside the city joining through their partner Grow2School CIC.
While its meals and markets meet immediate needs, Food Works is firmly focused on long-term change. By teaching growing and cooking skills, offering team-building experiences, and providing space for people to connect, it is helping Sheffielders take food back into their own hands.
“We want to create a city of growers,” says Meijer. “A place where food connects us, not just to each other, but to the earth and our communities.”
The 10-year anniversary book Our Food Works is more than a keepsake. It’s a collection of voices from the past decade: volunteers, staff, customers, and community members who’ve all contributed to what Food Works has become. The book also includes recipes, tips, and lessons learned, making it a practical guide for anyone who wants to eat better and waste less.
The crowdfunder will support the production of the book and fund new initiatives to deepen Food Works’ impact across Sheffield. It’s a chance for supporters, whether long-time volunteers or first-time donors, to be part of shaping the next ten years.
“This tenth anniversary is a moment to celebrate the incredible power of our community,” says Meijer. “Food Works was built from the ground up by thousands of dedicated volunteers, loyal supporters, and engaged customers. Our Food Works is a way to honour that spirit and invite more people to join us.”
Every contribution, big or small, helps. Whether you're funding the printing of a book, helping expand food growing to more schools, or enabling more Just Meals to reach people in need, you're investing in a fairer, more sustainable Sheffield. Over the past decade, Food Works has proven that another food system is not only possible, it’s already growing.
So let’s raise a fork, and a few pounds, to celebrate what’s been achieved together, and to help it grow even further. Support the crowdfunder, get your hands on Our Food Works, and be part of building the next chapter of food justice in Sheffield. If you’re looking to donate, you can do so here: thefoodworks.org/join-us/crowdfunder
Together, we can make Sheffield a city where good food works for everyone.
ShefFood is Sheffield's food partnership, bringing together a cross-sector network of organisations to build a fairer, healthier, greener food system in our city. To learn more, contact us at info@sheffood.org.uk or visit sheffood.org.uk.