Food bank to start operations in March
dubai — The first branch of UAE food bank is set to open during the first week of March, a top Dubai Municipality official has said.
On the sidelines of Gulfood 2017, Noura Al Shamsi, head of permits and applied nutrition section at the municipality, said the branch, which will be located around Al Quoz area, is among five others that will be launched by end of this year.
Within the next three years, the UAE food bank will have branches across the country to facilitate food collection process from food entities to charity organisations.
She added that while the different small branches (or containers) of the food bank will help in distributing daily products, a main branch will store long-shelf products. However, specific locations of the branches were not yet disclosed.
“The containers will be the hub where food is collected from food entities and hypermarkets. Charity organisations will be able to pick up the surplus food from the container and distribute it to the needy on the same day,” said Al Shamsi.
Specialised food trucks for the first branch will be provided depending on quantities of food collected.
Announced in January, the UAE food bank aims to eliminate food waste, making Dubai the first city in the Middle East to achieve zero food waste through distributing surplus fresh and dry food to those in need at both a local and regional level.
During its first five days, the UAE Food Bank signed agreements with 85 hospitality-sector entities, including hundreds of restaurants and over 100 supermarkets.
She added that qualified and trained food safety supervisors will be present at every branch, working on two shifts, to ensure that safety requirements are followed. Every zone in Dubai will have a food truck to transfer the surplus amount of food.
Hotel employees and charity entities will be educated on how the process will work through a workshop that will be conducted by the municipality on March 1.
A guidebook will also be distributed to food entities stating specific safety requirements to be followed while donating the surplus food, such as portion sizes, food temperature and packaging. Al Shamsi said the food bank will include other programmes besides distributing food to the needy.
“As we aim to have zero food waste, we will collaborate with the municipality’s waste management department on converting the organic waste, which cannot be distributed, to energy and fertilisers. We will also include the environmental aspect as we educate the public on recycling food,” she added.
Initiative to include the public
While the food bank will be focused on collecting surplus food from hospitality sector and big hypermarkets, a programme targeting residential areas will also be launched during the holy month of Ramadan.
“Besides collecting food, the programme will also aim at educating the public on the type of food that can be donated. There is specific high risk food that cannot be distributed, such as salads for example,” added Al Shamsi.
She added that the food safety department is looking at coordinating with the waste management department to determine the areas with highest food waste. “In this way, we will be more structured and organised.”
Meitha Al Marri, senior food inspection officer, said as food bank will have strictly regulated food safety, “it will be difficult to accept food from households.”
“Food companies and charities already have qualified supervisors who coordinate with ours, so there’s that control. We cannot, however, control food that comes from households,” said Al Marri, noting that individuals can register in the food bank as volunteers, not as donors.
An execution committee is currently regulating the food bank initiative. The committee, chaired by the Dubai Municipality, includes representatives of Islamic Affairs and Charitable Activities, Food & Beverage entities, DP World and Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing.
The food bank’s first campaign is set to distribute 30,000 meal packages to those in need.
sherouk@khaleejtimes.com