Bel Canada, Congebec and Food Banks of Quebec partner to reduce food waste
Who: Bel Canada and Congebec
What: The companies have partnered with Food Banks of Quebec (FBQ) to reduce food waste and redistribute products to the FBQ network.
Initially set up by Congebec—a company that provides logistics and management of chilled and frozen food products—the initiative aims to recover unsellable food from the supply chain.
The initiative is being rolled out in several stages: offering free storage space to Food Banks of Quebec, encouraging the participation of its customers and providing support in the supply chain to maximize food sharing.
"At Bel Group, our mission is to provide healthy and responsible food for everyone. We are proud of the tangible measures we have implemented to achieve our goal of zero product destruction in our Canadian operations, particularly at our Babybel manufacturing plant in Sorel-Tracy," said Marie-Eve Robert, VP of marketing and CSR at Bel Canada, in a release. "More than 46% of food is wasted every year in Canada. This program, in collaboration with Congebec and Food Banks of Quebec, will play a key role in the fight against food waste and insecurity while optimizing the performance of our supply chain. As a sector leader, we hope our commitment will encourage other companies to join this great collaboration."
Nicholas-P. Pedneault, CEO of Congebec, added: "Our expertise in logistics and freezing is unique in the food supply chain, and that is why we are committed to supporting the food aid network to preserve food and enable its optimal distribution. Since the official announcement of our partnership with Food Banks of Quebec in 2023, the impact on our communities in terms of food aid and through our crucial role in preventing food waste has been strongly felt. The freezing services we offer give food banks access to high-value products like Bel Canada's. Through this new partnership, we want to demonstrate that, as a corporate citizen, we have an important role to play in the fight against food waste and food insecurity."
