Food donation can serve as a vital solution to the challenges of global hunger and food waste. It redirects safe, surplus food that would otherwise be lost or wasted onto the plates of those who need it most. Yet, uncertainty surrounding food donation laws and policies is hindering the expansion of food banks and food recovery organisations.
The Harvard Law School Food Law and Policy Clinic (FLPC) and The Global FoodBanking Network (GFN) announced The Global Food Donation Policy Atlas in March 2019 to identify and explain national laws relating to food donation in 14 countries (Argentina, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Guatemala, India, Mexico, Peru, Singapore, South Africa, the United Kingdom, and the United States). FoodForward SA, a member of GFN, is proud to have been selected to participate in this global study.
The findings of the study were published last month and analyze the most common legal barriers to greater food donation in the participating countries. It also shares best practices for overcoming these barriers.
For each country, the FLPC put together a legal guide outlining current laws related to and affecting food donation, as well as a written set of recommendations for how each country can strengthen their food donations legal and policy landscape.
The research has also produced an interactive website which features a map of food donation policies that allows users to make comparisons across countries.
Given our 12-year track record of foodbanking and being the largest food recovery and distribution non-profit organisation in South Africa, GFN and FLPC approached FoodForward SA to participate in the global study. Our MD, Andy Du Plessis was a respondent in the study and helped the FLPC researchers understand the South Africa food donation policy landscape and how food donation in S.A is affected by national laws and policies. Andy also reviewed the SA policy recommendations and legal guide.
The project is supported by the Walmart Foundation and hopes to help address the most pressing legal questions and operational barriers to food donation around the world. You can read the recommendations for South Africa here.