This grassroots group is delivering food to the front doors of east Londoners in need

Mac Ross loads the trunk of his car with loaves of bread, bags of buns and packs of sweets every weekend, ready to deliver them to the doors of Argyle residents throughout the following week.

The east Londoner is an organizer for the Argyle Food Circle, a new group working to keep day-old food out of the garbage and into the bellies of people in-need.

"It's a different way of doing things by taking food to people, rather than setting up and having people come to you," Ross said. "People seem really excited about it."

Once a week, Ross posts in the Argyle Food Circle Facebook group looking for eight people in need of food. He uses an app on his phone to map out the most efficient route, then drives door-to-door for three hours doing deliveries. 

While the group is intended for people in Argyle, Ross said he won't decline requests from other London neighbourhoods. 

"Mac has shown up like my hero and brought things that I could make for dinner for my kids when I literally had nothing in my fridge," said Mary-Ellen Lawrence, who has received food from the Argyle Food Circle four times. 

"There's no proof of income or ID and I don't have to explain that I haven't been able to feed my kids in a week to get help," Lawrence said. "There's no judgment, it's just a wonderful easy service."

Ross said the group decided to use a no-questions-asked approach after seeing people get mistreated in other Facebook community groups when asking for food donations.

"We feel like people wouldn't ask if they didn't need it, and they shouldn't have to explain to strangers why they're in the situation they're in," he said. "If they need food, they need food."

The group gets most of its donations from Noorenberghe Farm in Mount Brydges and Lynn's Bakery in east London. 

"It's important that everyone gets fed. Things aren't very easy right now for a lot of people," said AJ O'Connor, the owner of Lynn's Bakery, which donates its leftover products every weekend. 

"If something is coming off the shelf and doesn't meet our standards to sell, but is certainly still good enough to eat, I don't want to see anything go to waste. I'd rather see it going into a hungry tummy," he said. 

In addition to door-to-door deliveries, Ross also takes larger quantities of food to London shelters like Anova and Unity Project.

"Now I'm getting to go out, say hello to people and feel like I have a sense of community as well," Ross said. 

Growing the circle

Ross currently does all the deliveries himself, but said he will need to find somebody to pick up the task when he moves out of province for a new job in the summer. 

"I'll still help with fundraising and doing everything I can because I do feel like this is my community and that's not necessarily going to change," he said.

Before he goes, he would also like to see the food circle expand by getting a large freezer, finding a permanent storage space and collecting more shelf-stable donations from community members. 

Ross also hopes the idea catches on, and more communities create their own food programs. He suggests people start by building relationships with local bakeries and farms to gather donations, and expand from there. 

It's something Lawrence is getting behind. She hopes more people take initiative to start a food circle in their own neighbourhoods. 

"Mac has proven one simple post on Facebook can change many people's lives," she said. "If you have an idea, just take that step and do it."