Dingwall community fridge project volunteers mark milestone a year after Covid-19 pandemic initiative was set up as part of a determined local response to the crisis

Volunteers behind a vital community food project in Dingwall have held their first in-person meeting to celebrate its first birthday.

Since opening last August, Dingwall Community Fridge has distributed more than five tonnes of food.

Located near St Clement’s School and the community centre, it has also provided a social hub during the pandemic.

Volunteers celebrated the anniversary with cake and tea at St James’s Church Hall.

Project chairperson Fiona Harrison said she was “incredibly proud of all that the fridge team have managed to achieve in the past year”, adding their dedication “is awe-inspiring”.

She said: “I love the way that people who come to the fridge support each other, having a laugh and talking about how things are going. It has become a fantastic social hub.

“I hoped that people would recognise the fridge as a place to keep social isolation at bay over the pandemic. Through many conversations, both our volunteers and service users have felt the social benefit.”

It emerged as a means to redistribute surplus food from local food retailers and also supported Highland Council’s humanitarian response.

Volunteers also ran a successful crowdfunding campaign which enabled the provision of milk, butter, cheese and soya milk on a Saturday morning during the school holidays.

To keep the service going, it hopes to recruit more volunteers who can offer even 30 minutes a week and help with picking up stock from supermarkets, cleaning the fridge and stocking the shelves.

Anyone interested in volunteering should contact chair.dcf@gmail.com.

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