"No Waste," the project to avoid food waste and help those most in need.

MERCY ASSOCIATION OF GALLICANO –

The Christian Charity Association " La Misericordia " in Gallicano, in the province of Lucca, founded in 1869, carries out social and healthcare projects. In addition to its primary role of providing an ambulance service, the association promotes numerous initiatives. Among these is the "No Waste" project, launched in 2006 through the active collaboration of the Misericordia, the Municipality of Gallicano, and the Conad supermarket.

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HOW THE NO WASTE PROJECT WORKS –

To combat the waste of commercial products that are close to their expiration date or damaged, the project involves the recovery of food and non-food items donated by participating supermarkets. These items are then distributed, through the association's volunteers, to families referred by the municipal social services or who have spontaneously requested them. Non-food items are also used as prizes in the town's popular monthly bingo game: the proceeds are used to purchase all the items needed by needy families for a decent weekly grocery shopping experience.

THE RESULTS OF THE PROJECT –

Over the years, many organizations have supported the project, from supermarkets to warehouses, enabling a circular zero-waste program to be created: non-commercial products are transformed into prizes during local charity raffles, which raise funds to continue supporting new initiatives.

( Photos taken by Stefania Adami, “Outstanding Italian Photographer”, the first woman to receive this important recognition )

The project is competing for the 2016 Non Sprecare Award. To learn more about the competition and participate, go here!

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TO KNOW MORE: Fighting food waste: Denmark is a world leader. A lesson for Italy.