Espoo Catering collaborates with food aid organisations to minimise food waste
Espoo Catering Oy has started to collaborate with food aid organisations to donate surplus lunch food from school kitchens. The collaboration partners are Manna-talo, Espoonlahti Parish and Kivenkolo Community Centre. Donations started early in the year with a successful trial period, after which the decision was made to continue this operating model.
The operating model is as follows:
- At the end of the school lunch period, Espoo Catering informs the food aid organisations about the surplus food, which is packed into containers by the kitchen staff.
- The food aid operators pick up the surplus food from the kitchen and distribute it to those in need.
This seamless collaboration serves as an excellent example of how surplus food can be effectively utilised while helping those in greatest need.
The primary goal of Espoo Catering is to eliminate food waste entirely. However, if there is surplus food at the end of the lunch period, the remaining lunch food can be utilised through collaboration. The school kitchen staff are pleased to see that the surplus food is put to good use.
Espoo Catering takes part in the Helsinki Metropolitan Area’s FoodWaste Ecosystem project, which aims to reduce food waste and utilise surplus food. Developing the surplus food donation process is part of this project.