Benicàssim’s hospitality sector has already ‘saved’ over 620 kilos of food with the ‘Comentalízate’ campaign

The initiative was launched one month ago with the aim of reducing food waste at the city’s restaurants‘

Benicàssim, 19 August 2022

Benicàssim’s hospitality sector has already ‘saved’ over 620 kilos of food with the ‘Comentalízate’ campaign. The initiative promoted by the City Council, through its Sustainable Development, Social Welfare and Trade departments, aims to raise awareness of the negative impact that food waste has on the city’s economy, society and environment. “We are very satisfied with the response to this pilot project, which aims to raise awareness of the need to reduce the impact we have and to tackle food waste. As a result, and thanks to the collaboration of our traders and the commitment of Benicàssim’s hospitality sector, we have already managed to prevent 620 kilos of food from going to waste”, said the mayor, Susana Marqués.

Based on the figures for the first month of the initiative, these 620 kilos of food were ‘saved’ thanks to the 10,000 containers and 1,500 bags given out for establishments to offer to their customers so they can take their leftovers home, preventing this uneaten food from ending up in the bin. In addition, over 14 kilos of CO2 has been saved over this period.

The aim of this campaign, promoted under the slogan “Comentalízate Benicàssim”, is to prepare for the Law on Food Loss and Waste Prevention coming into force in February 2023, which requires restaurants to provide their customers, on request, with the leftovers of their meal in appropriate and sustainable containers.

The campaign, with the hashtag #ComeCooperaConciencia, was rolled out initially at 30 restaurants taking part in the pilot project, as well as a number of food-related businesses, which have been provided with bags to prevent perishable goods from going to waste. The restaurants taking part in this first phase are clearly identified with the “Comentalízate” seal, to ensure customers are aware of their commitment to tackling food waste. In this regard, as explained by the Councillor for Sustainable Development, Cristina Fernández, “one of the most interesting aspects of the initiative is that it is possible to monitor in real time the amount of food not going to waste, since each establishment and each container has a unique code that allows the economic and environmental savings to be recorded with every container used”. All this data is collected on the website comentalizate.nadiesinsuraciondiaria.es and managed through blockchain technology developed by Nadie Sin Su Ración Diaria.

One of the key objectives of the campaign is to generate greater social responsibility in the face of a very serious economic and environmental problem, with the support of Solidariza Tu Energía, a social project seeking to reduce inequalities while raising people’s awareness. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), 1.3 billion tonnes of food, worth approximately one trillion euros, is thrown away every year. In addition, this food waste is estimated to have an impact amounting to 700 billion euros in environmental costs and another 900 billion in social costs. It is estimated that food waste generates approximately 8% of all greenhouse gas emissions caused by human activity.