Starbucks Logo - © Starbucks

Starbuck’s Joins Global Food Rescue Effort

Canadian Starbuck’s fans can be proud that some of the the money the company makes on the Coffees and Snacks they buy will soon be going towards rescuing leftover food from Starbuck’s shops so it can be used to feed those in need. It’s a major commitment…

Wasted Food Dump - © thehansindia.comIt’s estimated that 58 percent of all the food produced and sold in Canada
is wasted. As shown above, a lot of perfectly good, nutritious food
is sent straight to the landfill because it doesn’t meet size or
appearance standards that the food wholesale and
supermarket industries demand…

Starbuck’s Canada has announced it will roll out its FoodShare program in phases starting this month and continuing through 2021, by which time all 1,100 Starbuck’s locations in the country should be enrolled. The Premium Coffee giant ran a successful pilot project last year in the Greater Toronto Area with Second Harvest, the largest food rescue organization in Canada.

“Wasted food is a wide-scale problem for everyone in the food business, while more than four million Canadians are impacted by hunger,” Luisa Girotto, VP of Public Affairs for Starbucks Canada told Food In Canada (FIC). “This is unacceptable, and we will help solve this now that we have a way to safely donate chilled, perishable food, while preserving its quality.”

Starbuck’s Canadian stores have always donated leftover pastries to food banks and missions. But refrigerated or perishable foods have not been donated due to food safety concerns. Now, Starbuck’s has developed a protocol which allows the safe donation of foods such as Breakfast Sandwiches, Paninis, Protein boxes, Salads, Yogurt, Milk and Dairy Alternatives such as Soy and Coconut.

Second Harvest will coordinate with local organizations which will collect the food and ensure that food safety standards are met.

A major commitment

Starbuck’s says it’s ultimate goal is to rescue 100 percent of the food from its stores that’s fit for donation. That’s a tall order. But Starbuck’s is confident it can meet the challenge. It’s already getting rid of plastic straws, using more recycled fibre in its paper cups, and making its shops more energy-efficient.

The program will also help divert large amounts of food from the landfills and, thereby, help preserve the environment. The Avoidable Crisis of Food Waste report says almost 60 percent of the food produced and sold in Canada is currently wasted.

That’s just insane!

…Especially when so many low-income, elderly and homeless people are at risk of going hungry every day, or are resorting to low-cost, low quality foods to make ends meet. Instead of thinking about ‘ugly’ and leftover food as ‘waste’, we should be thinking of it as ‘surplus’, and giving more thought to how it can best be used, rather than chucking it in the trash.

~ Maggie J.