Many thankful for the amazing work of a revolutionary idea

Have you ever wondered what happens to the food that is prepared for aeroplane passengers and rejected? Rest assure that it’s not going to waste, at least not all of it.

In a new initiative, OzHarvest Brisbane started working in correlation with the major airlines to collect uneaten fruit, sealed bars, sealed biscuits, and uneaten sandwiches and is delivering them to the less fortunate in our communities.

The charity started in 2004 and has always “rescued” quality food from commercial businesses from all parts of the country to deliver to those doing it tough at no charge. Queensland Manager Cameron Hickey told ABC “Pretty much anything you’re seeing on an airline is something we can redistribute, as long as it’s still in a fit state to eat. There’s many delicious meals in first class that aren’t eaten, which often means there’s excess food along the supply chain.”

The group can collect between 200 and 400 kilos of food each day from Brisbane Airport. Cameron said “Within two hours of us picking up the food, it’s then delivered to a charity for the homeless or someone doing it tough. Sometimes it’s really funny when we drop some of the first class food to the charities as they think we’re kidding.”

It’s all about minimising food waste while helping out others in the community that need a helping hand. The major airlines have welcomed OzHarvest to help them solve a big problem of their own, “If we can help tidy up airlines and help them get more efficient, then we’ll move onto another industry and go there,” Cameron stated.

The other businesses that they want to move onto are the food vendors within the airports. Cameron concluded, “There’s work we can do within the airport, so we plan to organise some centralised collections that we can move to the charities”.

A lot of people have OzHarvest and their “outside the box” idea to thank for a full stomach tonight.

What other companies could help out organisations like OzHarvest feed people but cut down on waste? Should the government help fund these worthwhile causes?