Clitheroe business raises £1m for Action Against Hunger UK

Unearthed, a Mediterranean food brand whose main manufacturing site is in Clitheroe, is celebrating after reaching the major milestone and donating the funds to Action Against Hunger UK, which helps save 23,000 lives globally from life-threatening hunger.

Since 2010, Unearthed, which is part of The Compleat Food Group, has pledged a 1p donation from every pack of its products sold to Action Against Hunger UK, which aims to end hunger by preventing and treating malnutrition in more than 50 countries around the world.

Lincoln Way in Clitheroe is The Compleat Food Group’s centre of excellence, with 340 staff manufacturing Unearthed’s range of Mediterranean inspired products for the past 14 years. 

Unearthed first joined forces with Action Against Hunger UK when it had only three olive lines in its range, with the Lincoln Way site in Clitheroe involved from the beginning.

Over the last 12 years, the brand has continued its penny on a pack commitment while seeing the rapid growth and expansion of its tasty global products, which include tortillas, olives, antipasti, and a growing range of frozen pastry products. 

To celebrate reaching this milestone, Unearthed is launching its #ThanksAMillion campaign to say thank you to its customers and team members based in Clitheroe and its other manufacturing sites for raising funds over the last 12 years.

As part of the campaign, a team from Unearthed has joined Action Against Hunger UK and more than 30 of its ambassadors, including chefs Angela Hartnett and Poppy O’Toole, on a trip to Peru to inspire other brands to engage with the charity’s fundraising programmes.

The team visited some of Action Against Hunger UK’s projects, as well as tackling a 26-mile hike to Machu Picchu to raise further funds for the charity.

unearthed staff at an Action Against Hunger UK project (Image: Action Against Hunger UK)

Carrie Hollis-Patel, marketing manager at The Compleat Food Group, which owns Unearthed, said: “Unearthed was born from an enjoyment of world food and flavours, but we recognise that for many people in the world, food remains a necessity in short supply, rather than a joy.

“That’s why, when we launched the brand 12 years ago, we partnered with Action Against Hunger UK to help them in their vision for a world without hunger.

“Since then, the rapid growth of unearthed and the support of our customers have helped the penny per pack pledge to raise an incredible £1m in donations to the charity.

“We want to say thank you to all our customers for making this possible and helping this charity to continue their important work in making food more accessible and enjoyable for all.”

Hannah Sanders, head of partnerships at Action Against Hunger UK, said: “Every penny donated helps Action Against Hunger tackle life-threatening hunger across the world, and Unearthed’s ‘penny on a pack’ commitment is a perfect way of showing this.

“We’re so proud to have reached the one million pound mark - a huge achievement! Thanks a million for helping us to save thousands of lives.”