A `Refood` collects food from supermarkets, restaurants, cafeterias, and other suppliers to distribute to individuals and families in need.
Founder and chairman Hunter Halder reports that `Refood` distributes 250,000 meals monthly. Last year, three million meals were delivered, preventing 1,500 tons of food waste.
‘Refood’ has reportedly assisted 7,300 beneficiaries and over 1,700 indirect beneficiaries (institutions).
In 2022, over 2,501,314 meals were rescued, 7,845 beneficiaries were assisted, and 1,250 tons of food waste were avoided.
Founded in 2011, `Refood` operates in 68 parishes nationwide in partnership with 2,400 establishments.
“The greatest achievements of `Refood` are the impacts on people’s lives. For instance, ensuring food for a family with children who suddenly lack it has a profound impact,” stated Hunter Halder.
Another Portuguese organization addressing food waste is Fruta Feia.
The cooperative targets food wastage due to the appearance of fruits and vegetables, preventing 23 tons of waste weekly.
“We prevent 23 tons of waste weekly, and to date, we have prevented 7,200 tons,” specified Fruta Feia’s founder and president, Isabel Soares.
Established in 2013, Fruta Feia initially avoided 500 kilograms of waste weekly, with this figure steadily increasing over the years.
“In 2022, we prevented 883,360 kilograms of waste, and in 2024, we prevented 1,050,615 kilograms,” stated Isabel Soares.
This nonprofit cooperative purchases cosmetically unappealing produce from farmers, which are then sold to consumers associated with Fruta Feia. The cooperative operates 13 delivery points in Lisbon and six in Porto.
In Portugal, the organization and mobile app `Too Good To Go` also combat food waste.
The company collects unsold food from establishments, like restaurants, and sells it at a discount.
Last year, the `Too Good To Go` app saved 6,500 tons of food, according to interim director Tiago Figueiredo.
“In Portugal, we have saved over 6.5 million ‘Surprise Bags’ (packs of leftover food),” the director stated.
Last year, more than 1,576,880 million `Surprise Bags` were sold, saving 1,576 tons of food.
In 2021, over 793,000 million `Surprise Bags` were sold, saving 793 tons of food.
The `Too Good To Go` app boasts over two million users in Portugal and partners with over 4,000 establishments, including restaurants, bakeries, supermarkets, and minimarkets.
Founded in 2016 in Denmark, `Too Good To Go` launched in Portugal in 2019.
The National Institute of Statistics reports that 1.93 million tons of food were wasted in 2023, up slightly by 0.3% from 2022.
