A CHEF has set a goal to make healthy food more accessible and affordable while also reducing food waste.

Maya Clark, 25, from Kemp Town in Brighton is the founder of Soul Soup, a start-up food business encouraging a cleaner, greener and more affordable way of eating a good diet.

She has been selling her food at markets and private events in and around Brighton for the last year, but will be established in her own cafe in a matter of months.

She said: “The aim is to make healthier food more accessible to people and to significantly reduce food waste.

“I have kept coming up against the misconception that vegan food is less affordable and less convenient and so I just wanted to tackle that and make plant-based diets and their health benefits accessible to everyone.”

Soul Soup’s task is to intercept food waste destined for landfill and use it to make their dishes including vegan soups, salads and omelettes.

Maya, who has worked as a chef at vegan sushi restaurant in Happy Maki in Pool Valley, Brighton, works closely with Harvest UK, a national organisation that collect food from commercial outlets and farms before it is taken to landfill.

She said: “One third of all food that is produced globally ends up in landfill. It’s an astronomical amount of perfectly edible food that is wasted every year.

“I have worked in hospitality for about seven years now and thought it was time to set up something that worked on reducing food waste and providing affordable healthy food to everyone, regardless of their background or income.

“We are a purpose-before-profit business.”

Maya is currently running a campaign to raise money for her new Soul Soup cafe which will be opening in Lewes in September

She said: “Our new cafe will be in the new community centre right in the centre of town.

“There will be other events such as yoga and dance therapy and we will be providing low-cost meals made from rescued food.”

Funds raised will help her buy second-hand essentials for the cafe including tables, chairs and crockery.

Maya said: “It will be fantastic to finally have a base where we can make and sell our food.

“By donating any amount of money to our campaign you are rescuing food from going to landfill, reducing carbon emissions, encouraging sustainable lifestyle choices and helping to nourish our community.”

To sponsor Soul Soup visit: www.kickstarter.com/projects/soulsoupcafe.