For the love of food
Did you plan the Christmas dinner yet? Is there still a company dinner planned? As we have already reported several times in the Advent calendar, about 30% of the food is thrown away. That doesn't have to be the case. The OGG is committed to a sustainable nutrition system and shows solutions - from the soil to processing to the Foodwaste Bankquett.
Foodsave banquet The feast of surplus food on the Bahnhofplatz in Bern. Since 2016, the Foodsave Banquet has been held every year at the end of September on Bern's Bahnhofplatz under the direction of the Open Church of Berne, and is dedicated to culinary delights. Around 30 Bernese organisations provide a great experience that more and more people are not willing to miss out on. The OGG Bern is the main sponsor of the event and, together with foodwaste.ch, the Äss Bar and the Stiftsgarten, is contributing to the success of the event. The approximately 60-metre-long, colourful banquet table arouses the interest of more than 1500 passers-by. In a relaxed atmosphere, the guests enjoy a menu made up of surplus food prepared by volunteers under the direction of top chefs from the Bernese gastronomy scene. The food tastes excellent, even if, or precisely because, vegetables are used for the preparation which do not meet the standard requirements or come from overproduction and therefore cannot be sold in the retail trade.
Learn more about the Sustainable Nutrition Network
The OGG Award honours people or projects that are particularly committed to a sustainable and innovative food system. Some of the projects awarded so far:
"My chef" operates the first anti-food waste restaurant in Switzerland and sets new standards in the sustainable use of food. The company produces 1300 meals per week largely with "food waste" and supplies various B2B customers. The unique operating concept reduces food waste to a minimum and increases the operating return. With a control point plan, the implementation in everyday life is successful and the optimized purchasing prevents food waste that arises in the upstream supply chain. This means around 10 times less food loss than in conventional gastronomy! The recipes in the cookbook of the OGG Bern, which you can win today with a little luck, come from managing director Mirko Buri, who also offers courses and stimulating company events on the subject.
"AemmeSchrimp" produces shrimps locally in a converted pig farm. The larvae are imported from the USA and fed locally in the Emmental until they are large enough for consumption. The jury concluded that Aemme Shrimp is an exemplary local solution to a global problem. While global shrimp production is struggling with degraded, saline soils, high antibiotic use and up to 80% by-catch food waste, a system with closed cycles and renewable energy sources could be developed.
The project "Radiesli" brings change to the roles of production and consumption in agriculture. In the spirit of solidarity, all people involved take part in cultivating, harvesting and distributing the food... Members are required to work several half days per year on the field with Worb where they help out in the garden and agricultural fields. Are you interested in community supported agriculture? Solawi.ch offers an overview of further projects of CSA in Switzerland.
Here you can find more OGG Award winners and information on how to apply.
What to do with the remains of the Christmas dinner ? Ideas can be found in the book "Restenlos Glücklich", which was published this year in a new edition and which we can raffle today. In some earlier windows of the Advent calendar sustainable development we also have menu suggestions, which are especially climate-friendly and vegan.
