Globally, 30% of food is wasted each year while in Ireland alone, over 1 million tonnes of food is wasted annually. FoodCloud is a social enterprise that combats food waste by connecting retailers and food businesses which generate large volumes of food to charities in need.
Glanbia first piloted a partnership with FoodCloud in 2018. Fresh, quality produce from Glanbia Ireland which would otherwise be destined for disposal as surplus, is redistributed to charities across Ireland by FoodCloud, creating a win-win situation by helping charities to save money and helping businesses reduce their carbon impact.
In March 2020, FoodCloud launched an emergency food and funding appeal to aid their charity partners in distributing food parcels. The demand for FoodCloud’s services increased in with the spread of COVID-19. The social enterprise has also seen a 50% decrease in surplus food donations from supermarkets as a result of stockpiling.
In first three months of 2020, Glanbia Ireland donated more than 33 tonnes of food to FoodCloud, equating to more than 80,000 donated meals. FoodCloud redistributed surplus food to 210 community groups across Ireland during the period.
Glanbia is proud to support FoodCloud, particularly at this difficult time for many in our communities.