The founder of a Cwmbran charity that helps cut food waste has been given an honour in the King’s Birthday Honour’s list.
Sabrina Cresswell founded Tasty Not Wasty to provide vital services to the community throughout the week.
She’s been awarded a British Empire Medal for services to the community. The Community Interest Company (CIC) also uses the food it collects to make meals that are then sold to residents at a low-cost.
It’s backed by a group of volunteers who make sure unwanted food is collected from supermarkets and used by the community. One of their busiest days of the year is Christmas Eve, when hundreds of food packs are put together at their base in Llanyrafon Methodist Church and distributed to households across Torfaen.
Sabrina told Cwmbran Life: “I was shocked when the letter arrived about the nomination.
“I had to read it about five times to make sure I was not imagining it. I was very happy to have been chosen to receive a British Empire Medal.
“But I recognise that without all the support and hard work that the volunteers put in and the connections that we have with other services, my little idea would not have gone too far on its own.
“I’m very proud of each volunteer that has helped get Tasty not Wasty CIC to where it is now. We have helped groups to set up similar organisations, from close by to further afield.
“The furthest group was a meeting to help a group in America understand what could and couldn’t be part of a community fridge (safely here) as they don’t have the same regulations over there.
“What happens next (for me) is a local ceremony with the Lord Lieutenant of Gwent and beyond that, I believe, I’m going to a garden party at Buckingham Palace.
“Next for the group is finding grants to help keep up with what the community asks of us.
“We have evolved because of the community and grow from them and what they need.”