King Charles Funds 800 Fridges And Freezers For Struggling Food Banks

The past few years have been a rocky road for the British Monarchy, both professionally and personally. First, there was the controversial sit-down interview that Meghan Markel and Prince Harry did with television legend Oprah (via BBC). They waxed honestly about the internal family drama sparked by Harry marrying a biracial woman. Then the family took a personal hit when Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, passed away in 2021 (via NPR). And then 2022 brought another major blow when Queen Elizabeth, the longest-reigning British monarch, passed away (via PBS). In the wake of her death, renewed conversations about the adverse history of colonization left the royals open to new critique and scrutiny from the population at large (via The Guardian).

Given the recent years of negative press, it may be that the newly crowned King Charles hopes to turn the tide around with his latest charitable action that will benefit many British families in need of food. And what exactly will a donation by the king provide? New fridges and freezers (via BBC).

According to the BBC, King Charles made a significant personal donation that will enable food banks and charities to provide more food for families in need. The money donated will help purchase 800 freezers and fridges, which will increase how much food that food banks can store. A London-based charity named The Felix Project will identify what charities will receive the new equipment and ensure that it is distributed to them by springtime.

In previous years, a lack of proper storage space forced many food banks to turn down significant amounts of food. When explaining the impact of the King's donation, The Felix Project boss Charlotte Hill stated, "The new fridges and freezers will enable us to store more food, which can be drawn on later down the line at times when donations dip, as well as reducing food waste." With the demand for assistance rising in the UK, due to rising inflation, fewer donations made it harder to reach families in need. Now that more food can be stored, more food in reserve will be able to help families even when the amount of donations received is low.