Flavours and Life and Excellent Surpluses: a solidarity partnership

The companies Flavours and Life and Excellent Surpluses unite in order to reduce waste and thus offer solidarity meals to those in need. This partnership is being carried out in a complex context. Between the health crisis deepening inequality and the impact of Covid-19 on the economy, poverty is a more than current subject. However, more widespread, solidarity actions affect all sectors of the economy. Businesses are therefore also at the heart of this issue.

Fighting waste while helping the neediest, the goal of Flavours and Life

In a context of health crisis, France is facing an increase in poverty. This causes an increase in the demand for food. Nevertheless, there is also an increase in mutual aid, allowing associations to be intensely helped. As a result, they have more and more beneficiaries in their ranks.

It is in this dynamic that the companies Flavours and Life and Excellent Excesses have decided to unite. Thus, Saveurs de Vie aims to develop dishes for the elderly or dependent. The company then delivers meals at home for these frail people. The company Excellents Surplus, collects and redistributes meals straight from the collective catering to the poorest. This helps to avoid waste, while providing food support to those in need.

flavors and life delivery meals elderly people
The company Flavours et Vie delivers fresh and varied menus to the elderly or dependent.

Thus, the union of the two companies has already made it possible to produce more than 5,000 meals, subsequently distributed to associations such as the Restos du Coeur, the Social Protection of Vaugirard or the Salvation Army. Cooked by the Chefs, the dishes are made with the help of the nutrition experts of Flavours and Life. Businesses are therefore joining forces to fight against waste, especially at this time of year when waste is important, while being in solidarity with the poorest.

The fight against food waste, increasingly widespread actions

Every year in France, more than 10 million tons of food is wasted. However, thanks to the Garot Act, France has been fighting food waste since 2016. Thus, France is a pioneer in the fight against waste because it is the first country to legislate for this. The aim of this law is to halve food waste by 2025. Reducing this waste thus responds to an environmental, economic, ethical and social challenge. Globally, for example, it emits a quantity of greenhouse gases, in part because of the energy needed to produce, process, package, conserve and transport.

Since 2019, the anti-waste obligations set out in the Garot Act have now been extended to collective catering and agri-food industries. Companies must respond to this struggle. In addition, reducing waste in business also has a financial aspect. Thus, food waste is also a waste of money. Indeed, it costs between 12 and 20 billion euros per year in France. To help companies participate in this fight, ADEME provides them with a restoration guide. It’s enough to think about sustainable and supportive solutions to be put in place in business.

Sources:

Solidarity Partnership Flavours and Life and Excellent Surpluses Fighting Food Waste: A Goal for Everyone,ESCAL Consulting, December 8, 2020 release

Reducing food waste in business,ADEME

Methodological Guide, Reducing Food Waste in Collective Restoration,ADEME

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