Milan, 5 February 2023 – Over 290 tonnes of food recovered in the last year, five Hubs against food waste active with the aim of reaching all neighbourhoods and over 40 supermarket outlets involved, 35 third sector organisations that have benefited from the collection of surplus food, and 103 schools involved in the ‘Sacchetto Salvamerenda’ project to educate children not to waste food.
These are the numbers that tell how much the Municipality of Milan, as part of its Food Policy actions, is committed throughout the year to combating food waste and raising awareness of the issue among all those involved in the food supply chain, from producers to distributors to consumers and schools.
The National Food Waste Day, established ten years ago and created to raise awareness on the achievement of the sustainability goals set by the United Nations Agenda, becomes an opportunity to take stock of what has been done and what is being done every day in the city in the field of food policy thanks to the collaboration of the many partners involved.
Over the course of 2022 in the four Hubs against food waste active in Milan, the last of which was inaugurated last September, more than 177 tonnes were collected by 12 supermarket brands, reaching over 3500 families (data: Food Sustainability Observatory of the Milan Polytechnic). To these must be added another 120 tonnes of surplus food recovered by Recup and Banco Alimentare of Lombardy, collected in the Hub Foody Zero waste (data source: University of Milan), thus reaching a total of over 290 tonnes of food recovered by 2022.
The Neighbourhood Hubs initiative launched in 2019 by the Municipality of Milan together with Fondazione Cariplo, Assolombarda, Politecnico di Milano and Programma QuBi is mainly based on the recovery of surplus food from Milanese supermarket outlets, with the construction of a territorial network involving the redistribution of these goods to third sector associations and non-profit organisations, which in turn distribute the food to people and families in difficulty.
The Foody Zero Sprechi initiative, on the other hand, within Sogemi, the Milan food market, has involved around 60 wholesalers, through the Valore project, promoted by Fondazione Cariplo in collaboration with Sogemi and the Municipality of Milan, together with Eco dalle Città and Caritas Ambrosiana active at the market.
Various initiatives are also underway at school, on the surplus recovery front, and thanks to the commitment of Milano Ristorazione, during the 2021/2022 school year 29,850 Salvamerenda bags have been delivered to children in 112 schools to take home bread and fruit not consumed, while from the beginning of the current school year to date 28,490 bags have already been delivered to 103 schools.
The partners of the Neighbourhood Hubs against food waste
Supporting organisations: Progamma QuBi, Fondazione Milan, Banca di Credito Cooperativo di Milano e Fondazione Snam.
Managing bodies: Banco Alimentare della Lombardia, Terre des Hommes Italia, Ibva Solidando
Technical sponsors: Avis Milano, Number1 Logistics Group, Croce Rossa Italiana – Comitato di Milano, SoDe social delivery.
Brands involved: Lidl, Bennet, Esselunga, Carrefour, Coop Lombardia, Il Gigante, Natura sì, Getir, Pam, Erbert, Conad, Glovo, con 41 punti vendita totali.
Hub Foody Zero waste at the Milan fruit and vegetable market:
Sponsoring organisations: Fondazione Cariplo, Comune di Milano, Sogemi
Participating organisations: Università degli Studi di Milano, Recup, Banco Alimentare della Lombardia, Croce Rossa Opera, Caritas Ambrosiana, Eco dalle Città.
