UAE’s national initiative curbs food waste, feeds over 1mln needy people

UAE’s national initiative curbs food waste, feeds over 1mln needy people

Ne’ma, the National Food Loss and Waste Initiative, in collaboration with UAE Food Bank, has distributed more than a million meals to the underprivileged within the country.

The initiative, which is aimed at recycling inedible food and managing food surplus to reduce waste, is in line with Ne’ma’s ‘Food Rescue’ programme held during Ramadan.

Ne’ma was established following a call to action from His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE, to address the negative trends of wasting food and its detrimental effects. UAE Food Bank was launched under the umbrella of Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Initiatives. Last year, Ne’ma and the UAE Food Bank joined forces to achieve the country’s food waste reduction goals, and hit the target of saving a million meals of surplus food.

This holy month, the joint initiative successfully diverted more than 908,100kgs of food from landfills, resulting in more than 1.35 million surplus meals being saved and provided to those in need.

“These collaborative efforts we have witnessed during the holy month of Ramadan stand as a testament to the genuine embodiment of Ne’ma’s vision in engaging major stakeholders nationwide,toward reducing food loss and waste,” Ahmed Taleb Al Shamsi, CEO, Emirates Foundation,