King Charles Celebrates 76th Birthday by Opening New ‘Surplus Food’ Hubs to Tackle Food Waste and Poverty

In celebration of his 76th birthday, King Charles III is dedicating the day to opening two food distribution centers as part of his Coronation Food Project, launched last year to help reduce food poverty and food waste across the UK. One of these new hubs, located in south London, is hosting a “surplus food festival” where meals are being prepared using surplus food that would otherwise be discarded. The King will also virtually inaugurate a second hub in Merseyside, northwest England.

Joined by London Mayor Sadiq Khan, the King will tour the new south London facility and meet with food bank representatives, school staff, and local community groups who will benefit from the project’s efforts. His Coronation Food Project has thus far raised £15 million to design, build, and operate a network of up to 10 food hubs across the country. This initiative has supported expanding warehouse capacity, boosting cold storage, and funding transportation for surplus food distribution. Working in collaboration with FareShare and the Felix Project, the initiative has saved around 940 tons of surplus food, amounting to over 2.2 million meals, and has awarded nearly £1 million in grants to community food programs.

In honor of his birthday, Buckingham Palace shared a new photo of the King on social media, depicting him in a blue suit with a matching tie and pocket square. The Prince and Princess of Wales extended their birthday wishes as well, accompanied by a photo from his recent Commonwealth visit to Samoa.

As part of traditional celebrations, gun salutes were fired in Green Park and at the Tower of London, while Westminster Abbey’s bells rang out to mark the occasion. Though King Charles observes his November birthday in a more low-key, working fashion, he also enjoys a formal celebration in June with the Trooping the Colour, a tradition dating back to King George II. Held during summer, this event brings together over 1,400 officers and soldiers to march through London, a practice that began as a standalone military event but was officially designated as the monarch’s birthday celebration in 1760 under King George III.