Peanut Butter company a lifeline for Hackney Foodbank
Pat Fitzsimons, CEO of Hackney Foodbank with Pip Murray, Founder of Pip and Nut
Peanut butter company Pip & Nut has become one of Hackney Foodbank’s biggest supporters.
Since 2020, the award-winning brand has donated more than 54,000 jars of nut butter and £26,500 to the food bank, ensuring people in crisis have healthy, protein-rich and energy-giving food.
The Shoreditch business donates a jar of peanut butter to Hackney Food Bank for every order placed on their website, and donates two jars for every advent calendar sold. The business also runs a match donation scheme, meaning anyone can donate a jar on the website and they will match it.
Pat Fitzsimons, CEO of Hackney Foodbank, said: “Every emergency parcel we give out (other than those going to people with nut allergies) has a jar of peanut butter. It’s a great source of natural protein and fibre and is filling – we see it as something of a wonder food!
“The partnership with Pip and Nut is amazing and we’re so very grateful for their support – demand for the food bank has soared with the cost-of-living crisis and the sight of a lorry packed with nut butter is always such a relief. Their financial contributions have been a huge help too – enabling us to fund a new delivery van for the charity.”
Contents of a Hackney Foodbank food parcel including Pip and nut items
Pip & Nut was founded by entrepreneur Pip Murray, who worked as a theatre producer at the Science Museum and is a keen marathon runner. Frustrated at the sugar and palm oil content of peanut butter, she started mixing butters in her kitchen and realised she was on to something. She started selling them in a south London market in 2013 and later won the Escape to the Shed competition, which provided her with a very small space to launch the business. After a successful Crowdfunder Pip and Nut started producing on a bigger scale in 2015.
They’re stocked in every major supermarket and employ a staff of 25.
Pip and Pat with the Hackney Foodbank van that was funded by Pip and Nut in 2021.
Pip said: “This year we hope to give 37,000 jars to Hackney Foodbank or the equivalent in cash donations – depending on what they need the most. They are an amazing charity. Hackney is one of the poorest boroughs in London with incredible levels of deprivation. Supporting the food bank is a meaningful way of connecting with our local community.
“Peanut butter is such a healthy food – it shouldn’t just be for people who can afford it. We don’t use palm oil or anything processed and it’s a great source of protein.”
Pip lives in East London and volunteered with the food bank during lockdown. Many of her staff volunteer there too. The company offers each staff member three paid days a year to volunteer.
She added: “When you’re packing up these emergency parcels, it really puts things into harsh reality to see the amount of food that is going out every day. Food banks shouldn’t need to exist – there should be enough support for people. But it’s uplifting – the guys at Hackney Foodbank do an incredible amount of work with relatively little resources.”
Food parcels in the Hackney Foodbank warehouse
Hackney Foodbank recently launched an emergency appeal to raise £100,000, as inflation and soaring costs leave many struggling to afford the basics. Pip & Nut have contributed generously to that appeal.
The company have also been sharing news of Hackney Foodbank’s good work with their 250,000 social media followers. Pip and Nut is registered as a B Corp, a title recognising its commitment to putting people, profit and planet on an equal footing.