presents
THE BANK BOOK January 2017
MEET OUR CHIEF FOOD OFFICERS!
2016 has been a very interes�ng year for the world. Poli�cally, economically and we guess even environmentally. It has been proven that we live in uncertain �mes and unpredictability is the new norm. In 2017, whilst we con�nue to grind our way through the daily calling of our mission And tackle more challenges that path the way ahead, Let us also be reminded that the luxury of excess food that we enjoy may just be a thing of the past If we do not cherish what we have today. Let’s savour every bite and reminisce every flavour while we s�ll can. Once again, we would like to give thanks to each and everyone who have made our mission possible. We can never say thank you enough.
Gree�ngs from The Food Bank Singapore! 2016 has been an exci�ng year and we would like to thank all our donors, sponsors, partners and dedicated Foodbankers for making this year possible! We promise 2017 will be filled with exci�ng ac�vi�es and opportuni�es for the young and young at heart! Once again we thank you for your unwavering support and look forward to a frui�ul new year!
CONTENT PAGE Announcements Project eat Better Events & Roadshows food drives juniors club The food pantry collaborations special thanks bank box locations 2017 plans
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Let The Feeding Begin! Nichol Ng Chief Food Officer The Food Bank Singapore
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Announcements Food Rescue Project We are proud to announce our new partners onboard the food rescue project! They are Uglycakeshop, Grain, Plain Vanilla, Delicatessen, Arox, Ode�e, Novotel and Marina Bay Sands! We welcome all F&B establishments to join us in our mission to salvage perishable food and reduce overall food waste!
Fresh food truck We are proud to have launched our Fresh Food Truck as part of Project Eat Be�er! Sponsored by Khoo Chwee Neo Founda�on, the truck enables our beneficiaries to receive perishable dona�ons, and will assist in educa�ng them on healthier ea�ng habits and meal prepara�on techniques.
TOTAL food collecteD IN 2016
219,600 kg! worth of food salvaged and redistributed 3
Project Eat Better
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PROJECT EAT-BETTER The
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In May, Project Eat Be�er was launched to raise awareness on healthier ea�ng among our beneficiaries. In Singapore, where 1 in 10 Singaporeans are food insecure, not only do they struggle to put food on the table throughout the month, but they also face challenges ea�ng healthily on a “shoestring” budget. Most beneficiaries feel that ea�ng well means paying more for food. The Food Bank Singapore hopes to change that mindset through educa�on, advocacy and also by supplemen�ng their usual food supplies with healthier op�ons. We believe that only when one eats well, can they perform be�er in school or at work. By ea�ng be�er, we may help them save on future medical bills.
INTRODUCING OUR HEALTHIER BUNDLE! In efforts to encourage donors to donate healthier food dona�on op�ons, we have specially cra�ed a healthier bundle to provide our beneficiaries with a more nuri�ous meal. Each $20 bundle includes the following items: Let The Feeding Begin!
Brown Rice Bee Hoon Extra Virgin Olive Oil Oats Lactose-free UHT Milk Fresh Chicken Eggs Fruit Pack Vegetable Pack
Head over to www.foodbank.sg to pledge a food bundle now!
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Project Eat Better
The Fresh Food Truck made its debut at the Yio Chu Kang YEC Food Movement Project (Ea�ng Healthier) ini�a�ve, championed by the grassroots organisa�ons (GROs) of Yio Chu Kang to promote healthier ea�ng on May 28. Sponsored by Khoo Chwee Neo Founda�on (KCNF) and various contributors, the truck is a fully-equipped mobile fresh food pantry that also transports other donated food. At the launch event, about 200 volunteers together with Grassroots Adviser Dr Koh Poh Koon, Minister of State for Trade & Industry and Na�onal Development, MP for Ang Mo Kio GRC - packed and distributed healthy food bundles to 1,000 needy households in Yio Chu Kang cons�tuency.
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Events and roadshows Food & Hotel Asia 2016
We are honoured to have been the adopted charity for FHA for the past two events! Throughout the four-day event, we met 3189 exhibitors from more than 70 countries and were able to salvage nine vehicle loads of food items from all over the world! We would like to thank all our donors and volunteers who helped collect and redistribute the food dona�ons! We are grateful for the opportunity to have salvaged excess food at a food exhib�on and we look forward to more opportuni�es at other such shows!
ITB ASIA 2016 We are proud to have been a part of ITB Asia 2016 held at Marina Bay Sands from October 19 to 21. Project X-pired art pieces were also exhibited during the conference and made available for auc�on. We were given the opportunity to meet like-minded individuals at the Sustainable and Responsible Tourism Hub; and look forward to more opportuni�es to exchange knowledge and prac�ces with other organisa�ons worldwide!
Project X-pired III
Into its third itera�on, Project X-pired was held in celebra�on of World Food Day on October 22 and 23. Ar�sts transformed expired food into wearable art pieces, which were exhibited and made available for auc�on to the public. We would like to thank venue sponsor Tampines 1 for giving us the opportunity to reach out to more than 3000 individuals and families! We would also like to thank official goody bag sponsor Suvida, official storage and transport partner, EBC Lifestyle Hub Pte Ltd, silver sponsor Lee Founda�on and our lovely Foodbankers for making the event a success!
NEA’s clean & green carnival The Food Bank Singapore spends 50 to 60 percent of our �me on advocacy and educa�on; and we were happy to have shared about our mission and cause at the Eco Fair that took place from the November 5 to 7. The students from Punggol Green Primary School and Dunman High School have done us proud by winning the Environmental Challenge. Their project pieces were also exhibited during the fair and we would like to give them a round of applause for their commendable effort!
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Food drives no. of food drives in 2015: 55 NO. of food drives in 2016: 157 Designed to be hassle and cost-free, food drives are o�en held in schools and corporate offices where even the smallest of contribu�ons can make a huge difference. We are happy to share that the number of food drives nearly �pped to 157 in 2016 compared to 55 the year before! We would like to thank all our donors who have selflessly contributed food dona�ons to ensure a steady stream of food ra�ons in our warehouse!
Joy in every bundle No. of bundles distributed in 2015: 10, 080 No. of bundles distributed in 2016: 16, 885 This year, we introduced a healthier bundle in support of Project Eat Be�er. Our Joy In Every Bundle programme allows donors to get the full experience - packing the individual food bundles from bulk cartons, to going door-to-door to deliver the bundles personally to the beneficiaries. 2016 has seen an increase of 6805 bundles being distributed compared to last year! We would like to thank all donors and volunteers for their help in feeding the needy!
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Juniors Club The Food Bank Singapore has seen an increase in number of Junior Foodbankers, from 150 members in 2015, to more than 280 members currently registered in our database! Aimed at children aged 5-12, the Juniors Club was started to encourage volunteerism from a young age. Juniors Club ac�vi�es and events are largely held every quarter during the school holidays and we look forward to seeing more Juniors involved in our events!
In March, Junior Foodbankers journeyed to the North-western part of Singapore and found themselves at Bollywood Veggies. They were brought on a mul�-sensory tour around the farm, had a hands-on po�ng session where they learnt about growing their own crops at home and were also treated to a hearty lunch on the farm!
In June, The Food Bank Singapore opened its doors and welcomed Junior Foodbankers to its warehouse for a fun-filled morning! The Juniors got a chance to learn about the daily opera�ons and even lent us a hand to sort incoming food dona�ons and make apprecia�on cards for our donors!
Head over to www.foodbank.sg to register your child as a Junior Foodbanker!
In September, Junior Foodbankers reached out to our beneficiaries from Moral Senior Ac�vity Centre (Kaki Bukit). On a balmy Saturday morning, they gathered to pack 250 healthier food bundles, followed by a door-to-door distribu�on. The enthusias�c juniors not only delivered food bundles to the beneficiaries, they also brought joy with their endearing smiles and giggles!
In December, we opened our warehouse doors once more and welcomed Junior Foodbankers to create fes�ve food hampers, make cards for our donors and beneficiaries. Instead of throwing out commonly used household items, the juniors were taught to upcycle toilet rolls into Christmas ornaments, gearing up for the fes�ve season!
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the food pantry
Over at 100 Sims Avenue, you can find our Food Pantry and great buys! The food items are consumable but have less than two months of shelf life, rendering them unacceptable to most of FBSG’s beneficiaries. Many of our beneficiaries have a rule on the minimum shelf life for food, with most requiring a minimum of two months before expiry. This usually leaves us with a lot of food items with less than two months of shelf life that we are unable to re-distribute. However, this does not reverse our posi�on that food is meant to be distributed for free to those in need. “The Food Pantry is not a fund-raiser but just another pla�orm for us to advocate food wastage reduc�on. We see a big poten�al to start a new movement to encourage people to change their consump�on behaviour,” says Chief Food Offier Nichol. For instance, those organising a party next week can buy 10 �ns of tuna which are close to expiry date to make sandwiches. There’s no need to get cans with longer shelf life when you are going to consume it soon. At the same �me, The Food Pantry acts as an emergency food ra�on pick-up point for our beneficiaries. Some of the organisa�ons that we work with operate five days a week, but when someone requires food, they usually need it urgently. Since The Food Pantry is open daily, beneficiaries issued with a card can claim up to $20 worth of items from the food pantry each month. We are currently running this programme with two of our beneficiary centres and hope to extend our outreach to more centres in 2017!
100 Sims Avenue, Singapore 387426 Mondays to Sundays, 10am to 1opm
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collaborations
festive food drives
FBSG x NTU
fbsg x tott
fbsg x pphg
The holiday season is a �me for gi�s, decora�ons and lots of food. More o�en than not, it is also a �me where great amounts of food wastage is generated not only from food prepara�on, but also from overstocking our pantries and shelves with fes�ve goodies. During the period leading up to Chinese New Year, our lovely Foodbankers were sta�oned at our Bank Boxes at Giant Hypermart (Vivocity and Parkway Parade) as well as Big Box to remind the public to buy only what they can consume and to share any of the excess goodies with our beneficiaries. It was heartwarming to see such posi�ve response from the public as we managed to collect and distribute 2850 tubs of Chinese New Year goodies! Together with EarthlinkNTU and NTU’s Welfare Services Club, Food Bank @ NTU was formed to mi�gate the issue of food waste by collecting excess food from the NTU Community. The pla�orm allows for NTU staff and students to learn more about how to tackle food waste and what they can do. Bank Boxes were also set up at 4 different loca�ons across the campus and are accessible to the public! Check out the loca�ons at: One Stop @ SAC, 50 Nanyang Avenue Hall 9 Canteen, 24 Nanyang Avenue Outside Hall 12 Func�on Room, 30 Nanyang Crescent The Hive, 52 Nanyang Avenue Together with To�, The Food Bank Singapore held its very first cooking class! On October 8, a class at To�@Dunearn was held by Chef Mimi Wahidi who taught par�cipants the art of preserving food in jars. More o�en than not, we tend to throw out perishable food such as bananas and oranges due to their short shelf life, contribu�ng to food waste. In just 3 hours, the class whipped up a delicious fluffy japonaise cake with mango and lemongrass, and a cheddar cheese scone with lemon, lime and orange. We would like to thank all our par�cipants and To� for this opportunity and we look forward to more such events!
World Food Day is a day of ac�on against hunger and is celebrated globally on October 16. People around the world come together to declare their commitment to eradicate hunger in our life�me. When it comes to hunger, the only acceptable number in the world is zero. In collabora�on with Pan Pacific Hotels Group and People's Associa�on, The Food Bank Singapore packed and distributed more than 1600 food bundles to benefit the underprivileged residents living in the west coast area. A big Thank You to all the partners and volunteers who made this project a success!
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collaborations
fbsg x ups foundation
fbsg x electrolux
fbsg x gfn
fbsg x gogovan
In June, The Food Bank Singapore received US$20,000 from the UPS Founda�on to purchase totes and pallys! Before the grant, The Food Bank Singapore relied heavily on carton boxes to pack and transport food dona�ons. There were �mes when carton boxes were not readily available and packing had to be put on hold. With the new reusable totes, packing of food ra�ons and delivery to our beneficiaries have been more convenient, �mely and smooth! Following last year’s #happyplateSG campaign in partnership with Electrolux, this year’s theme #UglyIsTheNewGood aims to encourage everyone in Singapore to pledge their support and embrace ugly food to help reduce food waste! For every 8 hashtags on Instagram featuring how the public intends to use or have used ugly food in their meal, Electrolux will fund the Fresh Food Truck for one day, ensuring that we will be able to collect and redistribute excess perishable food items to families most in need. Also shared on Facebook was, a social experiment conducted by Chef Michael where a gourmet meal was whipped up and had received good reviews. What the par�cipants did not know? The ingredients were what the public would consider “ugly” and would otherwise have thrown into the trash. In March, Foodbanker Jo-an and Chief Food Officer Nichol made their way to the world’s first and largest Food Bank in Houston for the annual Food Bank Leaders Ins�tute. Foodbankers from around the globe gathered and exchanged ideas, prac�ces and solu�ons to the different challenges faced. “It was indeed an enjoyable learning journey and we have gained so many new insights and are excited to share and implement new prac�ces”, shared Jo-an.
We would like to thank Gogovan for their con�nuous support throughout the year! During the Chinese New Year period, The Food Bank Singapore received overwhelming response for dona�ons at our bank boxes islandwide. With only one van, it was difficult to keep up with the collec�on of food dona�ons and deliveries of food ra�ons. Gogovan stepped in and gave us a helping hand! With a new promo code on their booking app, donors can now easily transport dona�ons from their homes, offices and schools to The Food Bank’s warehouse without worrying about the hassle of transport! 11
SPECIAL THANKS From sending volunteers to our warehouse every month, to diligently assis�ng us in sor�ng and inventory taking of incoming food dona�ons, packing and delivering food ra�ons and food bundles, we would like to give a shout-out to these organisa�ons who have helped make a huge impact in food waste reduc�on and for allowing us to let the feeding begin!
AIRBNB
Bank of AmericA MERILL LYNCH
Salesforce
ups
FUren international school
ISS International school
Dulwich college singapore
Morgan Mckinley
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bank box locations In the past, our warehouse at 39 Keppel Road used to be the only drop-off location for donations, making it inconvenient for donors living in other parts of the island to donate their excess food. With the introduction of a Bank Box adoption scheme, organisations can now adopt a Bank Box and gather donations at a centralised location for everyone in the area to give back to the community and do their part to reduce food wastage! Since 2014, more than 80 Bank Boxes have been adopted and are placed in both public and private spaces such as condominiums, schools and corporate offices. Our Bank Boxes are designed to collect only non-perishable food donations that have not yet expired and are unopened. Check out the list of public bank box locations where you can drop them off below!
West Loca�ons
South Loca�ons
National University of Singapore: School of Engineering, Techno Edge Canteen, Faculty of Arts & Social Sciences, The Deck Canteen, School of Computing, The Terrace Canteen
Quayside Isle, Sentosa Cove: B1, outside Management Office (Operating hours: Mon to Sun 10am to 10pm)
Giant Hypermarket Grand Stand , Entrance 200 Turf Club Road #01-1 Singapore 287994 (Operating hours: Sun-Thurs: 9am - 10pm, Fri-Sat: 9am - 11pm) Big Box, Level 1, Check-out exit at Supermarket, 1 Venture Ave Singapore 608521 (Operating hours: 10am to 10pm)
Central Loca�ons City Square Mall, L2 (Beside CS Counter) 180 Kitchener Road, Singapore 208539 (Operating hours: Mon to Sun 10am to 10pm) Liang Court Shopping Mall, L2 CS Counter, 177 River Valley Road, Singapore 179030 (Operating hours: 10am to 10pm) Forum The Shopping Mall, L2 CS Counter 583 Orchard Road, Singapore 238884 (Operating hours: 10am to 9pm)
Giant Hypermarket Vivocity B2, beside the customer service counter Vivocity, Lobby N Level 3, Sentosa Concourse (Operating hours: Mon to Sun 10am to 10pm) Chrysler Jeep Automotive of Singapore, 1 Chang Charn Road, Singapore 159630 (Operating hours: 9am to 7pm daily) Alexandra Technopark, Outside Management Office 438B Alexandra Road, Singapore 119958
East Loca�ons Giant Hypermarket Parkway Parade, Self-Checkout Area, 80 Marine Parade Road #03-27/30 Singapore 449269 (Operating hours: 9am to 10pm) Viva Busniess Park, Level 1 Lift Lobby 750 Chai Chee Road Singapore 469000 (Opening hours; 9 am to 10 pm) The Food Pantry, 100 Sims Avenue Singapore 387426 (Operating hours: 10am to 10pm daily)
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2017 plans October
16 We are excited to be launching our very own Youtube channel, where we will be pos�ng educa�onal videos, volunteer training videos and sneak peeks on what goes on behind the scenes of our daily opera�ons. We are on the lookout for foodbankers and interested par�es who can contribute in any way!
World Food Day falls on October 16 every year to declare their commitment to eradicate hunger in our life�me. Over the past 3 years, Project X-pired has been held with different art themes. In 2017, we plan to commemorate it in a new fashion, so stay tuned to www.foodbank.sg for updates!
The Food Bank Singapore spends 50 to 60 percent of our �me on advocacy and raising awareness about food wastage and hunger issues. In 2016, we gave 35 school assembly talks and corporate lunch talks and we aim to con�nue raising awareness in 2017! Drop us an email at enquiries@foodbank.sg if you’d like us to visit and share more about The Food Bank Singapore!
In 2017, we aim to con�nue providing healthier food op�ons for our beneficiaries and to provide them with a steady stream of food ra�ons. To be able to do so, we would require a regular flow of incoming dona�ons. Drop us an email at enquiries@foodbank.sg if you or your organisa�on is interested in pledging food bundles or food dona�ons on a monthly or quarterly basis! 14
we thank you for your unwavering support
and wish you a prosperous 2017
Let the feeding begin!
www.foodbank.sg enquiries@foodbank.sg 6831 5395 39 Keppel Road, #01-02/04 Tanjong Pagar Distripark, Singapore 089065