CA’s food sharing scheme, the Food Resources Recycling Centre (FRRC), was established in July 2013 and currently sponsored by the Environment and Conservation Fund since August 2014. We aim to encourage more people to participate in food waste reduction and give back to the community through mutual help and sharing! At the end of 2022, FRRC recovered 485 tons of fresh and packaged food, which benefited over 245,000 people in the past 9 years.
Time flies, and here comes 2023! It is time for us to look back at some of the main events for FRRC in 2022. To save more food resources, we have extended the Tsing Yi Wet Market recovery from 3 to 5 days and expanded our food recovery program to Fung Heung Yuen Bakery Limited since January. To deliver the “food wise” message, we have organized the Wet Market Food Recovery Experiential Activities and promotional booth activities.
Have a happy & green 2023, and we will continue to take on our role in encouraging food sharing in the community!
Food Resources Recycling and Food Assistance Service promotional booth
FRRC completed the promotional booth activities in last December. During the booth activity, we promoted our Food Assistance Service, CNY festive food recovery 2023 and conducted a survey to research what resources people needed during a pandemic outbreak. There were a total of 161 respondents. 33% of participants said they needed packaged food, while 25% needed staple food. Vegetables, fruits and packaged foods accounted for about 20% each.
Food Wise Week 2022
Last December, Pentecostal Yu Leung Fat Primary School hosted a food-wise week with more than 240 participants. Students were able to learn about the severe food waste problem in Hong Kong, how to read food labels on packaged food, different methods to slow down the deterioration of food, and ways to reduce food waste. We hope the students comprehend the importance of cherishing food and reducing food waste.
Wet Market Food Recovery Experiential Activity Summary
This January, FRRC organized the wet market food recovery experiential activity for the three students from the Department of Geography and Resource Management of the Chinese University of Hong Kong. Accompanied by our staff, they collected food from the Lei Muk Shue wet market. After collecting the surplus food from the wet market, FRRC staff guided them to conduct inspections based on the quality of the food to ensure all food items are meeting the center’s distribution and food safety standards. Then they distributed the food to the registered recipients and reminded them to consume them as soon as possible.
After finishing the food distribution, they followed the center's cleaning routine to clean all recycling tools and the center space to maintain good hygiene and a clean workplace.
Through the food recovery experiential activity, they realized that food recycling was a big challenge. The essential step in tackling the severe food waste problem in Hong Kong is to avoid creating it in the first place.
