The fifth and final Food Forward project food waste tour was run on the 4th and 5th of February 2015 in the Cape Town region. The participating individuals included delegates from organisations such as Greencape, Green-genie, Icologie, ACSA, Cape Town Partnership, Spar, Vineyard Hotel, V&A Waterfront, as well as delegates from the Western Cape Government Department of Economic Development and Tourism (Green Economy).
The tour began at the CTICC on day 1, where the group was shown the ins and outs of the food supply chain, the kitchen facilities and catering services offered on the premises. The CTICC it seems runs a very tight ship, where every single food item is tagged and monitored and kept in the right environment to prolong its life. Sandwiches for events are even made in the “cold kitchen” where the ambient temperature is lower to slow spoilage. Vegetables are ordered pre-peeled, reducing the amount of waste created on site. Any kitchen and catering waste that cannot be utilised by staff, in the kitchen or given to charity finds its way into the organic waste bins, which are specifically demarcated and closely tracked. These are collected by a waste contractor who then processes the waste, creating usable compost. In general, the CTICC operations are rather impressive, especially since they operate with such volumes.
Next stop was the newest tallest building in Cape Town, FNB Portside. Here the group was exposed to a very similar type of establishment to the previous visit, except for the fact that the food is mainly catered to serve the office staff. The ordering, cold chain and operational procedures are very similar to the CTICC, however, the food waste system at Portside still has a long way to go. All other recyclable materials are separated and recycled by the building management, but unfortunately the food waste currently generated is not separated and recycled yet. The building is very new so a number of teething issues are expected, so the opportunity still exists for at source separation of food waste where it can be reused and recycled by a potential contractor. What was also interesting to note here, is that the risk of illness and thus possible litigation from diverting some of the potentially edible leftovers to charities, prevents the company from engaging in this space. This policy environment is certainly a key one for government to look at in the battle against food waste, where there is possibility to draw from legislation such as the Good Samaritan Act of the United States, which deals with this issue and tries to protect food donors from unjustified legal recourse.
Day 2 saw the group bright and early at the Cape Town market. Here the delegates learnt all about the market, its history, operations and waste management system. As it turns out, less than 2% of total fresh produce throughput is not able to be sold, but it is not wasted. This damaged or unsold produce is first sorted, where the edible parts are diverted to the in-house feeding scheme “food on the table”, as well as the Food Bank. The remainder is then sent to a variety of different facilities, including pig farms, worm composting and an on-site composting facility operated by the composting company, Y-waste. The team also got the opportunity to visit the Y-waste pilot facility, where they saw the composting in action. Only as very small proportion of unrecyclable waste is sent to landfill, less than 1%.
The last activity of the day and the tour was a visit to the Woolworths distribution centre in Montague Gardens. Participants were given an in-depth breakdown of the operations at the facility, including supplier delivery, storage, cold chain facilities and the loading/shipping process. As it appears, the only food wasted in the process at the facility is that which gets damaged during handling, which is said to be less than 1% of the total throughput. Unfortunately this is not yet sent for composting, however, the company is busy investigating this possibility. What happens on a farm level when suppliers are turned away for being late or having sub-standard goods is known to a lesser degree, however, it also seems that farmers have a number of back-up plans in these rare instances. For example, badly packaged and subsequently damaged eggs cans still be sent to make liquid egg for cooking. Overall, it was amazing to see the efficiency and organisation of the operation, and very interesting to see how many layers of complexity there are in a seemingly simple distribution process.
The Cape Town tour was a great final addition to the Food Forward tours, where the group was able to focus on end of the chain closest to consumers. While some facilities are already maximising their efforts to manage food inputs and outputs, some still have a way to go before they can be food waste efficient. It is, however, inspiring to see a great level of waste awareness this far down the chain. Consumers on the other hand may need a little more education, encouragement and support to get them involved.
That’s it for the Food Forward tours, please don’t hesitate to get in touch regarding any potential opportunities or any suggestions that the 110% Green team can help to facilitate.