1. Best-before dates are about to expire
Food Banks of The Netherlands:
“In the best of worlds, we would not exist.”
Wishing that the stores to had more waste, in order to get more
donations. Is that allowed? Carine Cassauwers from Rotterdam,
is a volunteer distributing food waste to thousands of poor.
‘Best-before’ and ‘use-by dates’ could soon disappear from
a lot of food products.The common sense is that expired
food is unhealthy.That misconception, and other untruths
are being unravelled.
“One person’s trash is another’s treasure”
Can you live in a monetary world, without paying for anything?
FOODWASTE
2
8
12

2. One of our biggest pollution problems, food
waste, is caused by misconceptions. Expire
dates, makes supermarkets and consumers
throw out more than they have to, because of
fear and confusion.The solutions could mean
the end of expire dates.
By: Evelina Bergström
Nienke Keesenberg, a student from Amster-
dam, is not making any difference between
products. If a product is old, there is no way
she would eat it.
“It is not good for your health,” she says.
In the supermarkets, the waste of expired
food is for another reason:
“If I sell it I can get into trouble,” says Nicov
Yperen, storeowner in Rotterdam, who re-
moves expired products from the store. ’
2 – Best-before dates
Best-before dates
are about to expire
Nicov Yperen, owner of a supermarket in Rotterdam, sends all the unsold bread back to the producer
in the evening.To limit food waste, it is transformed into cattle feed. Photo: Evelina Bergström
The currently labeling directive makes a
distinction between expiration date (best-
before date) and ultimate consumption
date (use-by date). After passed expire date,
it does not necessarily mean that a product
can no longer be sold. Under certain condi-
tions (but not with all products) the super-
market may extend the best-before date.
The responsibility then shifts from producer
to the seller.
Source: Reducing food waste,
Wageningen UR

3. Expired food is in rare cases bad for your health,
and seldom dangerous. And what supermarkets
often not know is that they can legally extend
expire dates.The EU now wants to decrease food
waste with 50 percent before 2025. By informing
about food safety, and clearing out confusions
about expire dates, the Dutch Governemnt have
set their aim at reducing food waste with 20 per-
cent before 2015. Researchers think the answer is
to remove expire dates completely.
Consumers are worst
Eating old food does not sound like a pleasant
story to Nienke, and the 22 year old is not making
a difference between products.
“Everything with a passed expire date goes into
the bin.”
Nienke does not waste that much, according to
herself. But according to research from the Envi-
ronment Centre (Mileucentraal) wasting food is
unconscious. Most people think they waste less
than average, which is 50 kilograms of food per
person and year.While 12 percent of what a Dutch
consumer buys, ends up in the bin. Consumers
waste food worth 2.4 billion every year.
Cautiousness with food comes with age,and the
Environment Centre defines food waste as worse
among women compared to men. Other reasons
for waste,despite expire dates,are that packages
are too small or too big. People buy more than they
need,prepare too big portions and dislike eating
leftovers.
According to Coen Gelinck, spokesperson for Min-
istry of Economic Affairs, Agriculture and Innova-
tion, expire dates are more of a legal formality,
than a measuring instrument for the consumer.
“If anything is bad with the product, it is on the
producers responsibility.”
The expire dates indicates whether the supermar-
ket, or the producer is responsible for the fresh-
ness of the product. But it is a misconception that
Those who
know about the rule, how-
ever, choose to not take the risk. Nicov
and his family have been eating leftovers from the
supermarket as long as he can remember, and he
knows from personal experience that expired food
is safe. But changing the date of a product is out of
the question.
“If it was a common policy among supermarkets,
then I would do it. But first I want to be sure about
the food safety.”
He would like clearer information about it, but
stays on the safe side at the moment. And ac-
cording to the report Reducing food waste, super-
markets are generally not aware of their rights
of changing the date.Tossing the food is a way of
avoiding complications.
Waste becomes energy
Avoidable loss in retail and supermarkets is up to
three percent of weekly turnover, depending on
the supermarket. Although he only recycles bread,
Nicov has little waste, and estimates it to one per-
cent of weekly turnover.
“The less we waste, the more money we make.”
And a benefit of being small, is they are good at
keeping the waste down.
“Small supermarkets are able to overview the store,
and always know what to order.”
Big supermarkets however can pay for waste man-
agement and smart solutions that small enterprisers
might find hard to afford. Ac cording to spokesper-
son Anoesjka Aspeslagh,at Netherlands biggest su-
permarket chain Albert Heijn,developing the waste
management is a continuous project.Their waste
control starts with an intelligent ordering system,
taking
external influences
into consideration,such as weather.
To prevent excessive order,the system tells the em-
ployers to order more ice cream when it is warm,and
less barbeque sticks when cloudy weather is expect-
ed. Bread,sandwiches and rolls are reused for cattle
feed,and all organics such as potatoes,vegetables,
fruit,dairy,pasta,meat and fish are put into certain
containers,sent away for fermenting.The purpose is
to create energy,or so called ‘green’electricity.
Products that are not suitable for sale, such as
bended cucumbers, are used for salads and ready-
made dishes.Why strangely shaped vegetables
should not be appropriate for selling, Anoesjka
Aspeslagh says:
“The shape of a cucumber or banana is not the most
important criteria, the quality has to be good.”
Human consumption is first
Advocators think that food waste is always
waste, if not consumed by humans. Among
them is Peter Schuurman, supermarket owner in
Amsterdam. Belonging to the biological super-
market chain Ekoplaza, every store is a franchise
company, where each owner decides on their
own waste policy.
According to Peter, the mentality among super-
markets is the most important.
“The shape of a cucumber is never a quality issue,”
says Peter, explaining that at times, a producer may
have nothing but bended cucumbers and Ekoplaza
would not shift producer because of that.Their
customers are used to funny shaped veggies.
”We sell all the food that nature gave us.”
Customers are also used to small scale shopping.
In line with a more sustainable way of running a
supermarket, Ekoplaza never order large amounts
of anything. ’
you have to follow all dates strictly.The longer the
expire date, the less you have to worry.
“Canned tomato’s and pasta sauces are good exam-
ples. Normally they expire within two years or more.
It is unnecessary to throw them out a few days after
the ‘best before’ date has passed.”
Gelinck recommends everybody to open, smell and
look. ”If your senses are not reacting to any smell or
weird taste, then there is no reason to worry.
Unlimited lifetime
With the exception of refrigerated fresh food, some
products have an unlimited lifetime. Among them
are salt, sugar and spices. Dried beans, rice and vin-
egar almost never go bad, but sometimes change
in look or smell. Sterilized canned food, vegetables
and fruit also have a remarkably long, almost infi-
nite lifetime.
According to the law producers have to place expire
dates on their products. Even in the cases they can-
not expire.When deciding the lifetime of a product,
they are exaggerated, for the producer to be on the
safe side. It is their responsibility if something hap-
pens.
Changing the date is legal
“I take most of the expired food to my house,
the rest I throw out,” says Nicov.What few­
­supermarkets know is that sellers of prepackaged,
unrefrigerated foods are permitted to alter the best
before date. But it can only be done if the product
still ‘possesses its normal properties’.
“The seller needs to open a package and make a
judgement,” says Gelinck.
In the moment a supermarket changes the date on
a product, the responsibility shifts from the pro-
ducer to the store.The original date indicates the
products freshness, from a producer perspective.
€4.400.000.000Worth of food is lost throughout the whole food production chain
“The less we waste, the
more money we make.”
“You need to have an organization to make
sure the food ends up in the right hands.”
4 – Best-before dates Best-before dates – 5

4. “It is important that
­consumers are informed
about what the best
before date means,”
“Campaigns create waste. If you have offers where
the customers are invited to buy two, and get the
third one for free, they buy more than they need.
Furthermore, the store loose control over what
is in stock, if you impulsively pile up something,
because it is cheap.”
“We are too small for a food bank. But most of the
time our food is eaten in the homeless shelters.”
It would be too expensive for him and franchisers
of Ekoplaza to invest in any recycling systems, such
as the one in Albert Heijn’s supermarkets. On the
other hand he is sceptical towards systems trans-
forming waste into cattle feed and green electricity.
“It creates another step of energy waste,” Peter says.
His theory is confirmed by Timmermans. In Dutch
newspaper ‘Trouw’,Timmermans recently said that
ten percent of all the energy spent on food produc-
tion, is maintained, when creating green electricity.
“Initiatives where the food is eaten by humans is
always a better alternative,”Timmermans said
to the Trouw journalist. Criticising modern waste
management systems, to be more about looks,
than actually reducing food waste.
The solution is: food banks
Food banks and solutions where humans consume
the food waste, is according to Nicov the best solu-
tion. But it is tricky for him to donate.
“We are too small and too far away from the food
bank.”
He suggest more local solutions where poor could
pick up their food packages, but he is not giving
much for private people coming buy, or so called
dumpster divers asking for permission to dig his
containers. He only wants to give free food to those
who cannot pay.
“You need to have an organization to make sure the
food ends up in the right hands.”
The Food Banks of the Netherlands is an organiza-
tion, currently run by volunteers, whose impor-
tance increases. According to Aspeslagh, Albert
Heijn donated 240.000 products to local food
banks last year
“The food banks and Albert Heijn are in close col-
laboration,” she says.
Currently 53.000 people in Holland are fed by their
food-packages. Small supermarkets do not have
enough quantities of food to interest the food
banks.
But when best-before dates have passed, food may
no longer be sold or given away to the consumers
or the Food Banks, even if it is good and safe. Such
as chocolate sprinkles which have passed their
expiration date. But if the best-before date on the
packaging is altered, it is ok. However in practice,
sellers hardly ever alter best before dates. Few
know about the option, and for the aware ones,
throwing it into the waste container is cheaper.
Alteration of expire dates
Better information to consumers, is among the
goals of the Government.That is concluded from
the research conducted by Wageningen University,
on the commitment of the Ministry of Economic
Affairs, Agriculture and Innovation.
“It is important that consumers are informed
about what the best before date means,” says
spokesperson Gelinck, also insisting that regula-
tions for the supermarkets need to be clearer.
Removing the expire dates completely from some
products is another suggestion. In the report Re-
ducing food waste, and also publicly announced by
Timmermans, in the TV program Zembla (An inves-
tigative tv program). On products without
obvious expire periods, such as non-refrigerated
food, producers set their own best before dates.
Tools used for indicating its freshness, is smell and
look. And researchers believe that could be done by
the consumers instead. It would be done together
with more information, and clearer facts about
the food, to not scare consumers. Another light in
the tunnel is research being done about the Ra-
dio Frequency Identification.The customer could
be informed about the true condition of the food,
through an indicator on the package.
The aims of reducing food waste with 20 percent
before 2015 in Holland,and with 50 percent before
2025 in Europe,might seem high. But while ques-
tioned in the Wageningen University publication
‘Wageningen World’,Timmermans said that through
converting his and fellow researchers theory into
practice - the goals are possible to achieve. ◊
In Peter’s opinion, food is meant for eating. Even
though a few kilograms go straight into the waste
container every week.The most important goal is
to make sure all food is consumed, therefore almost
every item is donated to local charity organizations
and homeless shelters before it expire.
Still edible garlic cheese is going out with the trash. “Most expired food
is eaten by my family,” says Nicov Yperen, shop owner. Photo: Evelina Bergström
6 – Best-before dates Best-before dates – 7

5. One person's
trash
is another's
treasure
AMSTERDAM | Living without money does not
sound like a possible scenario. But an entire
network of people around the world, calling
themselves ‘freegans’, abstain from traditional
economic systems and forage the cities for free
supplies. Not out of poverty or desperation, but
as a political statement.
By: Evelina Bergström
Not paying for anything, but only taking what he
can find for free, Robin Geldloos (man without
money) as he likes to call himself, might appear
as a parasite to some. But according to him he
contributes.
“I bring new value to abandoned things. Instead of
letting that stuff go to waste.”
Being used to explain himself on this point, Robin
adds:
“My contributing to society is to waste almost
nothing.”
Since a few years back Robin almost only live from
free things. He barely buys anything, because that
is against the lifestyle of a freegan. By not partici-
pating in the consumption society, the goal of a
freegan is to create as little waste as possible. But
it has its consequences. Freegans have to find their
food in the trash. ’
”You can’t be afraid to dig in,” says dumpster diver Robin. Here at a market in Amsterdam.
Photo: Evelina Bergström
Dumpster Diving – 9

6. From the day we are born we learn that working,
earning money and paying your rent is the way
to live. Our society is based on consumption and
buying. But an alternative lifestyle, freeganism,
is spreading around the world.Through finding
different living strategies, freegans limit the par-
ticipation in a conventional economy.The idea is
to cause as little possible waste, by reusing others
trash. And with the right mentality, you can collect
everything from your breakfast to dinner.Without
getting caught.
Two years in prison
The coast is clear at our first stop in Amsterdam,
as the member of the staff is walking back into
the store.The first target is a supermarket of
Albert Heijn. Determined, Robin opens the con-
tainer from the side, silently to not distract the
employees that could come out, wondering what
is happening. From the mess of cardboard boxes
and plastics, a peanut-butter jar and chocolate
muffins are picked up.
“It has been thrown out because it is damaged,” he
says while scrubbing off the litter.
Robin explains how he lives from supermarkets
mistakes. It is their job to open all organic prod-
ucts and empty them into recycling containers.
“I guess it takes too much time,” says Robin, who
was working at the supermarket chain in his
younger years.
“Once I offered some senior managers from Albert
Heijn cookies, straight out of their container.”
They were being interviewed on a radio show,
about their waste policy, and did not know that a
dumpster diver was investigated their trash out-
side the radio house.
“It was fun to see their faces, while eating the cook-
ies, and I told them it came straight out of their
trash,” Robin laughs.
“You should be careful as a dumpster diver, and
not look for trouble. Show your respect and walk
away if there is trouble.”
But picking pastry out of a supermarkets con-
tainer resembles of a situation, with trouble as a
consequence.The so called ‘muffin man’. 51 year-
old Steven De Geynst from Belgium, was recently
sentenced to six months in prison, for violent rob-
bery of two packs of muffins.
What the ‘muffin man’ did, was
breaking one of Robins essence
rules.While caught outside the
supermarket by members of the
staff, in the act of stealing two
packs of muffins out of their
waste container, he started a
fight. By harassing the super-
market staff and resisting to be
arrested by police authorities.
“What he did is not leading to anything good.”
The difference between Belgian and Dutch legisla-
tion is not that different,and in Belgium the trash
still belongs to the owner. Even in the waste contain-
er. But as Robin sees it is,the law is not a matter. ’
A wide selection of food is offered in the waste container of an Ekoplaza store.
The biological supermarket chain, is according to Robin one of the worst wasters.
Photo: Evelina Bergström
“I’m more of a ‘cheagan’ today.
A freegan who is cheating,
and sometimes buys stuff,”
10 – Dumpster Diving
Free food without creating waste
Guerrilla gardening
‘Guerilla garderning also called ‘political gar-
dening’ is the act where activists start plant-
ing on abandoned pieces of land, where they
do not have the permission to grow crops or
plants. Guerrilla gardeners believe in reviving
unused land and give it new value by using it.
Some guerrilla gardeners work at night and
in secrecy, while others work more openly, en-
gaging with members of the local community.
Gleaning
Collecting leftover crops from farmers' fields,
after they have been commercially harvested.
Or harvest fields that are not economically
profitable to harvest. According to Trashwiki,
ancient cultures promoted gleaning as an
early form of a welfare system. For example
ancient Jewish communities required that
farmers to not not crop all the way to the
edges of a field.The crops left on the edges,
were free to take for poor and strangers.
Source:Trashwiki.org

7. “You can always leave if somebody sees you, and come
back when the supermarket staff is gone.”
In order to change the world you need to have fun. Not
look for troubles like the ‘muffin man’, who stained the
dumpster divers reputation.
“I mean no harm. And if somebody has a problem with
what I do, I will stop.”
Robin thinks that having fun is the essence of dump-
ster diving. He used to be more dogmatic about his
lifestyle, but nowadays he allows himself to pay for
things.The mother-to-be of his first child needs a vari-
ety of food.
“I’m more of a ‘cheagan’ today. A freegan who is cheat-
ing, and sometimes buys stuff,” Robin laughs.
Ecological stores are the worst
If your hobby is to investigate trash, it is easy to find
out when and where the containers are best to exam-
ine.
“I like to share with others, where and when it is good
to dumpster dive,” says Robin, who keeps track of
containers, and announce them to others in the web-
site trashwiki.org.The first page of the webpage, with
the quote: One person's trash is another's treasure,
encourages everybody to upload their articles. Since it
is public, people from all around the world contribute.
All containers in Amsterdam have not been checked
by Robin yet, and today we are heading for a new
dumpster. It belongs to a store you might think has the
smallest amount of waste, the biological supermarket
chain Ekoplaza. But according to Robin, they are the
worst offenders.
“Albert Heijn is better at recycling.The small stores can
probably not afford advanced recycling systems.Their
waste containers are always a mix of everything from
vegetables to meat, still in their packages.”
While the container is opened, at our next destination,
a mix of biological flaxseeds, bread and vegetables
meet the eye.The container is a mess, and some food
have been mixed with others. Robin never wears
gloves:
“it can always be washed off later,” he says while pack-
ing his bag full of the filthy packages.
Some garbage men call out friendly encouragements
and pedestrians peek with curiosity. Preconceptions
and looks seem to have hardened Robin, and looks
from the surroundings are not bothering him. Some
dumpster divers are hiding, only savaging food at
night, but Robin wants to show himself to the world.
“I am proud of dumpster diving and want to inspire
others to do the same.” ◊
The trash is revived,after some cleaning in Robins kitchen. None of the products where expired,only
filthy on the surface or wasted because of damaged packages. Photo:Evelina Bergström
1 plant 3 .50
1 Volkskrant 1 .50
2 bags of biological flaxseed 5 .74
1 box of champions 3 .96
1 litre of rice milk 1 .95
2 bags of tomato soup 2 .80
1 bag of mushroom soup 1 .96
1 celery 1 .79
1 endive 0.70
1 package of ready cut salad 2 .49
1 pepper 0.99
1 tomato 0.15
1 cucumber 0.59
1 brie cheese 2 .41
1 box of egg salad 1 .19
1 can of peanut-butter 0.99
1 bag of cat-litter 2 .60
1 10-pack of eggs 1 .66
1 bag of potatoes 1 .69
€ 38.66
An average 'dumpster dive'
resulted in food worth a
weeks consumption for an
average Dutch person (42
euro per week).The numbers
not only refer to the amount
of money being saved, but
also show how much food
waste can be rescued. 14.000
euro could be saved, if a per-
son dumpster dived every
day for a year.
(Albert Heijn’s online store
has been used to calculate
the prices.)
One 'dumpster dive' is
a weeks worth of food
During two hours in
­
Amsterdam west, the
­following was savaged:
12 – Dumpster Diving

8. ROTTERDAM | Fighting against food waste and poverty,
is the main goal of the volunteering organization ‘Food
Bank of The Netherlands’.Thousands of hungry citizens
rely on them, but the food bank lacks resources. Joining
the EU Food Aid program would fill in the gap. But the
government recently ruled out the opportunity.
By: Evelina Bergström
An assembly line of fifty, cheerful volunteers have
gathered to fill the identical blue boxes with a colourful
mix of groceries.The volunteers, non-paid workers from
job centres, companies and organizations, gather every
Thursday morning to make sure that 3300 packages are
arranged.There is nothing wrong with the non-refriger-
ated food donated to the food bank, except the content
is not always that impressive.The donations are often
snacks and non-nutritious food, vegetables and health
food are exceptions.
“At the moment we are lucky,” says Carine, holding a
fresh mango in her hand. A new line of exotic fruits
did not sell as well as expected at one of the donation
companies. Beside her is a giant pallet of onions, that
recently came in because of a surplus in the stock.
“When supermarkets have too much of something, they
have to sell it really, really cheap. In those cases it might
be better to give it away for free.” ’
Food Banks of
The Netherlands
“In the best of worlds,
we would not exist.”
Food Banks of The Netherlands – 15
3.300 packages to Rotterdam citizens, are filled and organized
within a few hours every Thursday. Photo: Evelina Bergström

9. In an industrial shed between Maashaven and
Delfshaven, the Food Bank of Rotterdam has its
office and stockroom. For unemployed people
in need, this is often the last stopping point. But
needy citizens calls are often left unheard.The
maximum capacity of clients at the food bank is
reached, simultaneously applications from people
living under extreme economic conditions, are
lining up.
The Food Bank of The Netherlands (Voedselban-
ken Nederland) supply 53.000 people with a food
package every week.
“We have an urgent need of more food”, says Ca-
rine.
Poverty is increasing in the second richest coun-
try of Europe, but from the public point of view,
the food bank is not a responsibility for society. It
started as a private initiative, and is still running
without public financing.
“We work without wages, relying on good will and
donations,” Carine says.
lands and the Social Democrats (SP) - the govern-
ment stays put with determination that Holland
will not participate.
While the government defines poverty at 1,400
euro, an income below what would be enough for
healthy, nutritious food, good clothing and children
hobbies, the food banks lower the crossbar with
almost a tenth. At 180 euro a month, you fulfil the
criteria to apply.The extremely low-income level is
to keep the pressure down, on an already stressed
organization.
“It is set where we know we can handle as many of
the applications as possible”, says Carine.
Single-households living on less then 180 euro a
month are free to apply, but with children it is dif-
ferent. For every person over 18 there is an addition
of 60 euro, and for smaller children 50 euro.
Temporary support
There are a lot of extreme circumstances where
Carine and her colleagues need to improvise.
“Sometimes it is impossible to neglect somebody,
and we can then step out of the rules a little bit.”
Being a mother of three, she is affected by the
recession herself. She used to work in an office, but
since the company went bankrupt she is now on
income support.What really keeps her going how-
ever, is the food bank.
“Working here gives me the energy and engage-
ment you might loose as an unemployed. In this
context I can still use my old office administration
skills.”
Many of the food bank clients belong to the new
kind of poor, due to the financial crisis.
“They loose everything over night, but it can ’
“We can’t help everybody
with our little capacity.”
16 – Food Banks of The Netherlands Food Banks of The Netherlands – 17
Almost 50 percent of edible and healthy
food gets wasted in EU households and
supermarkets each year. Simultaneously 79
million EU citizens live beneath the poverty
line and at least 18 million are depend on
food aid from charitable institutions.
Source: European Parliament
Poverty increases
Especially children are victims of poverty. Many of
them are left to fend for themselves.
“We can’t help everybody with our little capacity”,
says the worried Carine.
And there is reason to worry according to the
Children Ombudsman (de Kinderombudsman).The
recent report ‘Children’s Rights Monitor’ (Kinder-
rechtenmonitor) could uncover that child poverty
is increasing. At the moment 327,000 children are
growing up in poverty and another 40,000 will be
affected throughout the year.
Food waste and poverty are hand in hand accord-
ing to the EU.The EU parliament recently called for
measures to halving food waste until 2025, and to
improve access to food for needy EU citizens.The EU
Food Aid program is supporting any member-states
who applies and wants to participate. Funds, and
surpluses in terms of food, are then sent to national
food banks. But Holland is not one of them. Despite
political pressure from the Food Bank of Nether-
The EU Food Aid Program
20 Member States and 18 million people
rely on the program. Any member state is
free to apply, and will then get support in
terms of aid to its national food banks and
charity organizations.The program started
in 1986 when farmers surpluses were col-
lected and allocated to EU’s most poor. It
was meant to expire in 2013, but through a
recent call from Members of the European
Parliament it was prolonged to the end of
2013. On the grounds that quitting the pro-
gram would mean a backlash to EU’s many
poor, especially children, that is increasing
because of the crisis. Another 43 million
people are at risk of food poverty (the in-
ability to obtain healthy affordable food).
Only during lucky weeks, can the packages be filled
with a wide variety and healthy food. Photo: Evelina Bergström
Snacks and non-nutritious food are often
being donated to the food bank.
Photo: Evelina Bergström

10. take up to three months before money support
kicks in”, says Carine.The centres where receivers
pick up their food packages around town are kept
private to protect the integrity of the clients. “If
you used to be a businessman or owner of a com-
pany, your reputation could be damaged if some-
one sees you visiting the food bank.”
Therefore clients can choose the place to pick up
their package.
The food bank only believes in temporary support.
“We evaluate our clients economic situation when
they apply, and also throughout their support pe-
riod.The sooner they can leave the food bank, the
better”, says Carine.
When the food bank is covering the most basic
needs,troubled people can spend less time on wor-
rying about hunger,and more time on trying to get
back into society.The maximum period for support
is six months, and thereafter people have to go on
by themselves, and give room to new applicants.
Nobody wants expired food
If the waste from the supermarkets would de-
crease, the food bank would have to shut down.
But Carine does not wish to increase careless
behaviour, just to receive more donations.
“It’s a dilemma.We aim at reducing food waste,but
at the same time we wish that our donators would
have more leftovers and give us more supplies. In
the best of worlds, however, we would not exist.”
Making it easier to donate food with expired use
by dates would be another ease for the food bank.
But it has its downsides.
“Even poor people are scared about expire dates.
But come on, you don’t get a heart attack from all
expired food,” says Carine, using rice as an ex-
ample.
Poverty: Municipalities problem
A last attempt by the Social Democrats (SP) and
the Christian Democrats (CDA) resulted in a new
debate about joining the EU Food Aid program
in May. But the suggestion was once again ruled
out. According to Murco Mijnlieff, spokesperson
for the Minister of Agriculture and Foreign Trade,
supporting the food banks with public money is
not within a near future.
“We find that social services are a matter of the
individual member states. And at the moment we
rather invest in labour programs.The government
believe in encouraging people to work themselves
out of poverty.”
Fighting poverty is also an issue mainly for the
Municipalities. And as far as Mijnlieff knows, the
Municipalities have a collaboration with the food
banks.
“There are brochures about the food banks that I
know you can get at the different centres where
people go looking for help.”
Since prosperities of getting EU-money or public
support is not leading anywhere, the Food Bank of
Netherlands have to think of alternative solutions.
Ac cording to Carine it would be a dream scenario
if companies started sharing a few percent of
their regular assortment. Not only oc casionally
when they have leftovers, but regularly because
they want to.
“If we had a steady input of food, we could help
more people.”
But that scenario is far ahead. Currently the work
is focused on approaching and convincing new
possible partners to donate at least their waste.
With some potential partners they reach a dead
end.
“Not everyone believe that food banks are a good
solution. Ac cording to them, poverty is manmade
and should not be solved through food banks.”
Then they want the discussion to be over, but Ca-
rine and the others will continue.
“When you are used to meeting mothers strug-
gling on some 50 euros a week, it would be inhu-
mane to stop the fighting.” ◊
18 – Food Banks of The Netherlands Food Banks of The Netherlands – 19
Food banks and expire dates
It is illegal to donate food with passed
expire dates. But companies and super-
markets are according to the law allowed
to change the date.Thereafter the donation
would be legal, but the report Reducing
food waste, from Wageningen University
shows that it seldom ever happens. Only
a few companies are aware that they can
change the dates, and often not willing to
pay for the expenses.
Source:Wageningen University
A volunteer with the messages ‘Get respect, give respect’ and ‘Work together’ Photo: Evelina Bergström