Accra, Ghana//— Food for All Africa as a member food bank within the Global Food Banking network has partnered with the GFN and the Harvard Law School Food Law and Policy clinic (FLPC) to examine the state of food donation laws and policies in Ghana through the Global Food Donation Policy Atlas.
After months of painstaking research and meetings with different stakeholders within the food supply chain in Ghana, a report titled “Food Donation Law and Policy in Ghana: A Legal guide and recommendation” is set to be released on October 15th as part of Food for All Africa’s 2022 UN World food day campaign.
The Global Food Donation Policy Atlas is the first collaborative research project to examine the state of worldwide food donation laws and policies.
Speaking ahead of the release, Operations Manager of Food for All Africa, Frank Kporwodu indicates the rationale for this project was simple: “food banks offer a unique solution to the double problem of food loss and waste and hunger by directing surplus food to people who need it most; however, in nearly every country where GFN members operate, vague or nonexistent food donation laws and policies hinder food banks’ efforts.”
Emily Broad Leib, Director and Founder of FLPC said “One of the challenges is confusion over the laws that regulate food and their application to food donation,”.
“Often, food donation is not even mentioned in laws, so businesses and food banks have a lot of questions as they try to figure out what is allowed when they have surplus food that could be donated.” The product of GFN and FLPC’s partnership, The Global Food Donation Policy Atlas, hopes to change this.
The Atlas examines food donation laws in over 20 countries including Ghana, providing country-specific policy recommendations for strengthening food recovery efforts. It points to several policy areas that could support national food loss and waste reduction, including:
- Strengthened tax incentives and reduced barriers to food donation
- Date labeling that clearly distinguishes between quality and safety
- Liability protection for food donors and food recovery organisations
- Standards for food safety specific to food donation
- Food waste bans or requirements to donate surplus food
- Government grants and incentives to support food recovery efforts
A special event is scheduled in Yeji within the Pru East district of the Bono East Region to commemorate the release of the report and world food day 2022.
