Doggy bag at school - Don't waste

The doggy bag is now an accepted reality, perhaps even in Italy. Wrapping up uneaten food at restaurants is, albeit slowly, becoming part of Italian culture. Restaurants, however, aren't the only places where uneaten food is wasted. School cafeterias , especially school cafeterias, are often guilty of large-scale food waste . In Italy, family food waste amounts to 11 kg per year , for a total of 240 tons , worth a whopping €8,7 billion . School cafeterias account for up to 50% of food wasted , so initiatives to combat food waste within schools are crucial.

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This is why, for several months now, Como schools have been providing their students with the famous doggy bag. If uneaten, bread and fruit will be bagged and taken home by Como elementary school students—as per a motion from the city council . Unfortunately, for now , only fruit and bread can be taken home . Cooked foods would require a blast chiller to comply with health and hygiene regulations. This machine is still too expensive to be distributed in all school cafeterias.

Milan

The initiative, however, has recent ancestry in Lombardy. In the capital, Milan, some schools began using doggy bags in their cafeterias as early as 2014, under an initiative launched by Milano Ristorazione, a Milan-based organization, and Legambiente. This pioneering move has led, to date, 82 Milanese schools to adopt the reverse "schiscetta" system: instead of putting lunch inside, to be eaten during break time on a bench, they fill it with leftovers from the cafeteria meal.

Piedmont

Meanwhile, just a stone's throw from Como, across the border between Lombardy and Piedmont, another similar initiative has taken hold in schools in the municipalities of Arona and Oleggio Castello . 1200 doggy bags have been distributed to students at those schools, including those who aren't enrolled in the canteen service. The Good Food Bags —as they're called in Piedmont—are handed out with a training session aimed at raising awareness of the value of food and avoiding waste. Furthermore, many institutions across Italy are using the Good Food Bag, including schools in Pesaro, Naples, Vercelli, and Follonica.

all in the province of Savona

Savona is also fighting against waste! Primary school students have long been provided with doggy bags where they can store uneaten food and take it home.

Somma Lombardo

The Somma Lombardo municipal administration has distributed over 700 recyclable plastic cooler bags to preschool students in their final year and elementary school students from first to fourth grade. This project aims to encourage children to avoid waste by recycling fruit, yogurt, bread, and other items.

samarate

Samarate, a municipality in the province of Varese, is also fighting food waste by distributing Doggy Bags in elementary and preschool schools. The project began in 2023 to raise awareness among children and reduce leftovers.

Doggy bags at school: where are they provided?