For the whole month of May 2019, De-LAB will carry out the first project of Social Innovation and Corporate Social Responsibility in Salento (Puglia) on the issue of reducing food waste in the catering and restaurant sector.
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- – Every year, globally, 1 billion 300 thousand tons of food are thrown away, equivalent to 600 cruise ships filled with food (AltroConsumo data, 2018)
- – In Italy 22% of restaurant customers believe that taking home leftover food is embarrassing and for this reason they prefer to leave it on their plate (data Coldiretti/Ixè, 2016)
- – At policy level, the issue of Food Waste is included in the objectives of the UN Agenda 2030, linked to the 12th Sustainable Development Goal, focused on Sustainable Production and Consumption
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De-LAB project will take place during the month of May in Salento (Puglia), applying Social Innovation methods to the behavior of a group of restaurateurs and their customers, involved free of charge.
For thirty days, various strategies of Corporate Social Responsibility will be tested, to explain the possibility of taking home the advanced food, favouring the diffusion of virtuous behaviors among the participating restaurateurs and their customers. The objective is to contribute to strengthening the reputation of a territory and a sector that are sensitive to their resources and able to implement a more sustainable model of food consumption.
Furthermore, the experimentation will allow the public institutions that are partnering up with De-LAB to evaluate the data emerged from the month of work, facilitating the possible development of local policies against FoodWaste, which may then be replicated in other territories.
An ambitious goal, which requires an integrated social design ecosystem populated by public, profit and non-profit actors, involved by De-LAB and actors of an innovative project with social and environmental value.
“LOL – LeftOver Lovers” we will be supported by:
- – Istituto Valorizzazione Salumi Italiani (IVSI), which will support the initiative by linking it to the IVSI Values Manifesto and the SalumiAmo project, both aimed at spreading a sustainable approach to the consumption of meat and cured meats;
- – The Michelin starred restaurant Bros’, renowned for style, originality and sensitivity to the issue of environmental sustainability;
- – The Municipality of Otranto, patron of the project and interested in experimentation with a view to future Food Policies;
- – Re-BOX supported by Edenred, which will provide free compostable trays for bringing home the leftovers;
- – Ecoggetti, which will supply gadgets made with natural, recycled and eco-sustainable materials;
- – ArcheoClub Otranto, which will support the creation of a network of local stakeholders;
- – The online magazine www.good-mood.it, specialized in Food News, which will report on “LOL – LeftOver Lovers” and its protagonists;
- – CAVIE aps, a local association that will help by promoting De-LAB’s project.