Portchester hosts successful mobile food bank
A MOBILE food bank has been hosted at Portchester Community Hub in the town’s main precinct, providing food packages to many local residents struggling with rising costs and financial hardship.
The event was organised by Tarem Services, a London-based cleaning company and social enterprise, in collaboration with some of their clients, CBRE and Zurich UK, as well as Portchester Community Association.
Despite rainy weather on the day, the Food Bank was able to provide food for 200 individuals, with 30 additional bags prepared for those who were unable to attend. Councillor Pal Hayre, Mayor of Fareham, and Portchester Councillor Paul Whittle also attended the event to show their support.
Tarem Services launched their Mobile Food Bank in October 2024, with Managing Director Titus Komolafe saying that they act to “support the communities in which we are working.”
“We’ve been supporting food banks for many years, and in 2023 the idea came into my head of what can we do better?”
“The one we’re doing in Portchester is because we have our client Zurich in nearby Whiteley, which means we service that area, we employ people in that area, so how do we make a difference in that area? It’s a tangible way for Zurich and us to support the local community”
The Mobile Food Banks aim to tackle in-work poverty, with Komolafe adding: “We realised the amount of people in uniform, like nurses and teachers and working people who were actually picking up food parcels, when supporting food banks in the past.”
Whilst Tarem Services are based in London, they work with local organisations to run the Mobile Food Bank events. Komolafe said: “We could go and set up anywhere, but we don’t know who’s who.”
“We work with people and organisations who have access and know the needs of the people in that community.”
Portchester Community Association hosted the event at their Portchester Community Hub; whilst they also provides a range of services and clubs for members of the local community, including running a pantry.
Laura Hall-Guy, manager of Portchester Community Association, said: “We provide the spot and the people, [Tarem Services] provide everything else. We reached out to schools, doctors, dentists, anyone that we could to try to reach out to people that needed our support with 120 people signing up to attend the Mobile Food Bank.”
Hall-Guy was hopeful that the event would have a positive impact on the community, as well as in aiding the work that Portchester Community Association do.
“I think it will help people a lot. Not only will the impact on the day help people in just getting some food that they need, but also it will probably help people realise that there are services out there, like the pantry, that can help them.”
“There’s plenty of support, people just need to ask for it! Hopefully [the Mobile Food Bank] will help us find some people that have slipped through the cracks.”
Titus Komolafe echoed these sentiments, saying: “It’s not going to solve the problem long-term, but it will solve it for a few meals. I think we need to have a wider conversation on all levels.”
“There’s a lot of food insecurity, it’s hard out there.”
Komolafe added that Tarem Services also want to recruit local people into employment whilst providing the Mobile Food Bank service.
‘It’s not just trying to give them a food parcel; it’s also trying to see how we could help them to get back into work if they want to.”
Since the launch of the Mobile Food Banks last year, Komolafe said that the reaction from local communities has been touching. He said: “You can feel the appreciation, it touches all of us.”
Whilst Tarem Services, along with their local partners, are undoubtedly making a great and meaningful difference in local communities such as Portchester, Komolafe noted that it is unfortunate that they had to start running such events.
“I wish we didn’t have to do it, it’s a great job I don’t want to do.”
Readers can see more information by checking out Tarem Service’s website and can contact them if they want to get involved in their work.
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PICTURED BY JOANNA BURRELL: Volunteers of the Mobile Foodbank in action despite wet and windy conditions in Portchester.