French bakery and patisserie chain Paul UK has raised £13,000 for charity The Felix Project as part of its annual Christmas fundraiser.

The business donated 50p from every Festive Pig Christmas sandwich sold to the London-based charity from 5 November to 24 December 2019. It also turned five tonnes of surplus bread into bread pudding, which was distributed daily to the charity’s shelters and schools.

The Felix Project collects surplus goods from the food industry and then distributes them to over 300 charities, primary schools and holiday programmes in the capital which is used to help vulnerable people who cannot afford it.

“Paul has been working with The Felix Project for four years and has raised a total of £51,000 so far. Each year, we run a Christmas fundraiser and, given the popularity of our Christmas sandwiches, it seemed only right to donate a percentage of sales to 2019’s appeal,” said Rachel Meier, sustainability development and project manager at Paul.

“Knowing that we are helping to close the hunger gap in London, while simultaneously reducing our impact on food waste by working with the amazing team at The Felix Project, means it’s a win-win for our communities and environment.”

Paul UK also rescued 55,000 meals, which would have otherwise gone to waste over the Christmas period, through app Too Good To Go. The app, which Paul extended to its entire UK estate in September 2019, allows consumers to purchase unsold food from top eateries at the end of service.

Aiming to minimise all food waste by 2021, all 37 Paul UK bakeries are now signed up and have saved 55,012 portions of food from going to landfill and avoided over 137.5 tonnes of CO2 production, according to the business.

“We are delighted to partner with Paul and continue to tackle food waste and food poverty in London. Paul’s continuing generosity in donating surplus food and raising money through its award-winning Christmas sandwiches means we can continue to rescue and deliver more meals to those people in London experiencing hunger,” said Mark Curtin, CEO of The Felix Project.

“We are so grateful for their continued support and look forward to working with Paul throughout 2020.”