Franco Manca, the pizzeria that donated 40 thousand pizzas to the homeless

Over the Christmas period Franco Manca, the famous pizzerias franchise opened in London in 2008, has donated more than 40,000 pizzas to homeless people. The project, born in 2018 to fight food waste and help less fortunate people, has achieved great success. In fact, for the first year the quota of 20 thousand pizzas was reached (deriving from excess loaves donated to charities by the 50 pizzerias of the franchise), but this year the quota was doubled.

The Franco Manca brand, opened in London in 2008 by Giuseppe Mascoli and Bridget Hugo, offers a classic Neapolitan pizza in a typical setting of the Amalfi Coast. The refined atmosphere and the genuine flavors of the pizzas have made the couple expand throughout the whole United Kingdom, thus employing hundreds of people. Franco Manca's social responsibility was already evident from the first hints of Brexit, as highlighted by the protest against the referendum decision: "The uncertainty about Brexit is already jeopardizing the availability of qualified staff of European restaurants in the UK", said the Franco Manca Governing body through a press release. The charity initiative of 2018 and 2019 has projected the brand even higher in the preferences of the British people.

The project is much broader than this and aims to raise awareness in the customers about the concepts of nutrition and zero waste for a company that not only aims at profit, but also respects the environment in which it lives and the people who live there: everyone, not just customers or employees.

From this point of view, we can also see the splendid relationship with employees who, on Christmas day, made themselves available to work for free to deliver food to those who could not go to the restaurants. The same employees who are actively involved in the company's processes to the point that over 50% of the hired employees hold shares in the Franco Manca company.

Franco Manca's pizza

The pizzerias are all in the United Kingdom, with the exception of a pizzeria in Salina (Sicily) that is open only 6 months a year. Mascoli and Hugo have been awarded as the best Italian restaurant in the UK on Yelp numerous times: but how is their pizza? The proposal is modern, although the pizzas are classic of the Neapolitan tradition. The dough is naturally leavened, very slowly with about 48 hours of maturation. The choice of components is in line with the social vocation of the members, therefore all the suppliers are very small and the ingredients are seasonal. Also, the price is unbeatable for the UK average: with only 5 pounds you can take a pizza Margherita at your home. A quite cheap cost, compared to other English competitors.