The Solid Waste Management and Public Cleansing Corporation reports that Malaysians produce up to 17,000 tonnes of food waste daily, with 24% of this discarded produce still suitable for consumption.
With an aim to reduce inequalities among underserved and targeted communities, Arvato Systems Malaysia has collaborated with local food bank, The Lost Food Project, to channel surplus produce and foods from dedicated partners directly to charities and selected Program Perumahan Rakyat (PPR) in low-income communities. The non-profit organisation ‘rescues’ produce and other dry food products and channels them to the needy, allowing the recipients to exercise creativity in cooking their own meals from scratch.
Arvato Systems Malaysia Corporate Responsibility Sponsor Lead, Ong Seng Hock, noted that this engagement is aligned with the company’s vision of social responsibility and giving back to the community in a tangible way.
“At Arvato Systems Malaysia, we empower our employees to drive sustainable projects through the Corporate Responsibility social group that contributes to the community at large. Through our collective efforts, we hope to drive change while also giving value to our employees with projects that bring meaning and fulfilment outside of their day-to-day responsibilities. This marks our pilot partnership with The Lost Food Project and we are humbled to be given the opportunity to work alongside the volunteers to prevent food waste by channelling them to the respective beneficiaries.”
Through this partnership with The Lost Food Project, Arvato Systems Malaysia managed to ‘rescue’ 4,832 kg worth of food, which is the equivalent of 13,805 meals. Alongside this, a total of 15 different charities and PPRs were supported.
The road to bridging the food scarcity gap among targeted communities is a long one but through initiatives such as these, Arvato Systems Malaysia hopes to make micro changes that build up over time.
Organised by Arvato Systems Malaysia’s Corporate Responsibility social group, the engagement allowed Arvato Systems Malaysia’s employees, to contribute their time and resources to provide tangible support to partner organisations.
In addition to this, the team regularly runs internal campaigns that allows Arvatorians to participate in projects such as tree planting, blood donation, beach clean-ups, clothes upcycling.
For more information on Arvato Systems Malaysia’s internal Corporate Responsibility initiatives or to learn more about the company, kindly visit their webpage here.
