Cracking Good Food launched in 2010, with the aim of encouraging and supporting more people to cook affordable, seasonal and nutritious homemade food from scratch.

Driven by their belief that EVERYONE deserves good food, their mission is simple: to work collaboratively with others to eradicate food poverty and increase food sustainability in Greater Manchester.

Cracking Good Food enthuse, encourage, and teach individuals and groups how to source and cook affordable, healthy, and tasty food from scratch, whilst minimising both food waste and their environmental impact.

Cracking Good Food successfully bid to Foundations Stockport Community Fund for £999.75 to fund additional ‘Pantry Pods’ projects developed in partnership with Your Local Pantry in Stockport to highlight nutrition and hydration week.

The Pantry Pods pop up sessions showcased live cooking demos and how to make the most of store cupboard ingredients to create healthy and nutritious meals. Pods were held outside Pantry@Number5 in Bridgehall and Woodley Pantry during March and April 2021.

It was a great opportunity to demonstrate how more obscure items in the pantries can be used in different recipes, encouraging pantry customers to feel more confident to pick out these food items during their pantry shop and try something new when cooking at home.

During the Pantry Pod sessions, pantry customers were able to learn new cooking skills and sample some hot and delicious food. The Pods also enabled pantry customers to socialise with each other outdoors in a safe way during the Covid restrictions.

Free herb plants kindly donated by The Kindling Trust were available for pantry customers to take away to use in preparing tasty meals at home.

The Pantry Pods had a positive impact on the number of people visiting the pantries, with visit numbers increasing by an average of 15% at both pantries during March and April 2021.

For more information about Cracking Good Food visit www.crackinggoodfood.org For more information and to find your nearest Your Local Pantry visit www.yourlocalpantry.co.uk