Finland Times

 

Shopkeeper Tuomas Laitinen and Salme Asunen, Tampere Parish coordinator of in charge of food for charity at a shop inTampere on September 3 in Tampere. Photo – Str / Lehtikuva.

Shops have been donating more food to charity organisations after the Finnish Food Safety Authority Evira eased its guideline last spring.

 

A number of organisations and shops have said the positive effects of the new guideline permitting donation of food for charity have started to show. 

 

Evira and Agrifood Research Finland-Mtt highlight that the new guideline has made it easier for shops to donate food which nears the expiry date. Such food would otherwise be disposed to the garbage.

 

Retail and wholesale stores dispose 65-67 million kilograms of food annually a large proportion of which could have benefited those on queues waiting to receive free food.

 

The new Evira guideline is also aimed at reducing wastage and is as well useful for shops wanting to clarify liability issues.

 

Shops are now able to donate, especially fresh food, easily, since the donated food safety responsibility has been transferred to the charity organisations. According to Evira, food industry companies donating food to charity organisations are also responsible for ensuring that the food they donate is safe.

 

According to Evira, if an unlabelled product is frozen, the date of freezing must be clearly indicated on the product. Charity organisations preparing food from donated foodstuffs may use the products after the use-by date as ingredients for meals on the next day, provided that the products are heated to a temperature of at least 70 degrees Celsius when cooked. 

 

In addition, the food donated can be used to feed the needy.

 

This has proven to be a success, such as Tampere Lutheran Parishes food banks distributes 200-400 lunches in a week.