Brambles partners with The Global FoodBanking Network to tackle hunger and food waste

A three-year agreement with international non-profit organisation The Global FoodBanking Network (GFN) will see logistics company Brambles provide supply chain knowledge, in-kind contributions, volunteers and donations to assist GFN’s efforts to reduce hunger, poverty, malnutrition and food waste globally.

The United Nations FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization) reports that the value of food lost or wasted annually around the globe — one-third of all food produced, or 1.3 billion tonnes — amounts to roughly US$680 billion in industrialised countries and US$310 billion in developing countries. Meanwhile, nearly 800 million people suffer from hunger every day.

Last year, the 792 food banks within GFN’s network distributed 421,840 tonnes of food to 6.8 million needy people across 32 countries.

Brambles CEO Tom Gorman said: “We are focused on reducing post-harvest food loss, improving the ability of smallholder farmers to access modern packaging that protects the integrity of the product and enhances food safety.”

Food loss and waste are recognised by organisations such as the World Bank, the United Nations FAO and the Consumer Goods Forum (CGF) as critical challenges in the fight to reduce hunger, protect the environment and grow economic opportunity.