Charities to get surplus food for distribution to needy

An initiative aimed at collecting surplus food from retailers and processors and distributing it to charities has been hailed as a model that could be replicated across Europe.

Tánaiste Joan Burton said the Bia Food Initiative (BiaFI) "acts as a bridge between the food industry and the charity sector. And (it) aims to save some of this surplus food which is estimated at upwards of 50,000 tonnes per year and direct it to people in need, thus matching surplus with scarcity."

She was opening Munster redistribution centre at Little Island Business Park in Cork and praised the scheme for its plan to open a national network of similar redistribution centres including outlets in Dublin and Galway.

Chairman of BiaFI Jack Dunphy welcomed the decision by the Department of Social Protection to fund the project with €267,000 over three years.

Project manager Karen Horgan said the initiative enables food businesses to donate surplus product quickly, while reducing disposal costs.