Cortina d’Ampezzo (BL), 19 February 2021 (MOREL)– Having made the decision to fight food waste during the World Championships, Fondazione Cortina 2021 joined Food for Good, a non-profit project by Banco Alimentare and Equovento and the association of the Italian meeting industry, Federcongressi&eventi, which recovers food not consumed during events (sports, corporate, musical, etc) and donates it to charities such as food banks and refugee centres. One of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to which Fondazione Cortina 2021 has decided to contribute is that of number 12 - Guaranteeing sustainable production and consumption models, and this is one of the activities that will help achieve the goal of halving food waste by 2030.
During the first days of the World Championships, the food recoveries were made by volunteers from the Veneto Food Bank. 114 first courses, 246 main courses, 96 side dishes, 130 desserts, 12 kg of salad and 10 kg of bread were recovered. Everything was sent to the soup kitchen of Belluno, run by the friars of the Mussoi Convent, in compliance with regulations thanks to Law n.155 / 2003, known as the Gadda Law.
The recovery was made possible thanks to the generosity of Contital - part of the Laminazione Sottile Group - specialized in the production and transformation of aluminium, which donated 1,000 aluminium trays with lids to the project to facilitate the recovery of food and the consequent storage in thermoboxes for transport by refrigerated vehicle.
"The fact that the organizers of a major sports event of global significance with half a billion television contacts have decided to support Food for Good fills us with pride", comments the president of Federcongressi&eventi Alessandra Albarelli. "I hope that Cortina 2021 will be the first of many sports events in which sustainability also involves the recovery of food".
Valerio Giacobbi, CEO of Fondazione Cortina 2021: “The sustainability of Cortina 2021 is not only made of ideals, but of small and large responsible and concrete actions made in everyday life. From the perspective of the Circular Economy, the partnership with Food for Good was a spontaneous step. We hope others will follow this good practice of recovering and sharing food ”.
Food for Good: how it works
With the help of the volunteers from Banco Alimentare and Equoevento, Federcongressi & eventi puts managers of catering companies in contact with the non-profit organization closest to the event location, so that excess food can be recovered quickly and safely.
Food for Good: Italian project an example for Europe
The initiative by Banco Alimentare, Equoevento and Federcongressi & eventi, of donating food not consumed during conferences and events to charitable organizations, is a best practice initiative on the EU platform on the issue of food waste. The platform was established by the European Commission as part of an EU Action Plan for the Circular Economy in order to identify, share and develop solutions to reduce waste in the food supply chain, to help achieve the Sustainable Development Goal of halving food waste by 2030.
Why recover food
Avoiding food waste is an act of civility, respect and solidarity. According to the latest Istat report, as many as 1 million 778 thousand families live in a state of absolute poverty, a number which is increasing due to Covid. 12.1% of minors live in absolute poverty, up from 3.1% ten years ago. (ends)
