PUTRAJAYA: The Bill to regulate Food Bank initiative seeks to ensure more systematic implementation of the food bank-related programmes and continuous involvement of all strategic partners and stakeholders, according to Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail.
He said the Bill was drafted after taking into account the experiences of other countries which had implemented the Food Bank programme.
“The first draft of the Bill has been submitted to the Attorney-General’s Chambers for review.
“We are not in a hurry, but we are quite confident that it (the Bill) can be tabled (in Parliament) by the end of this year,” he told reporters after opening the Seminar on Food Bank Malaysia here today.
Earlier in his speech, Saifuddin said the ministry had managed to secure the commitment of over 430 supermarkets nationwide to donate their food surpluses to Food Bank Malaysia since its inception in December last year.
He said the collected food surpluses were then channelled to the target group by the ministry’s strategic partners, namely Food Aid Foundation, Kechara Soup Kitchen and Mutiara Food Bank.
The minister said, as of March this year, a total of 1,156 tonnes of food had been saved from being wasted and 113,726 needy recipients had benefitted from the initiative.
Saifuddin said the ministry was planning to expand the network by reaching out directly to more stakeholders in the food supply chain such as farmers, manufacturers, restaurants and hotels as the collective effort from them could ensure the sustainability of food supply and future-proof Food Bank Malaysia.
“We should also start looking into generating donations by raising funds from the corporate sector. This is to strengthen the capabilities of Food Bank Malaysia so that we can help more people in the future,” he said.
On measures to curb food wastage during Ramadan, Saifuddin said food industry players had been advised to join the Food Bank initiative as the ministry could share with them the data on the recipients.
“According to the Solid Waste Management and Public Cleansing Corporation (SWCorp), about 15,000 tonnes of food are wasted daily and the amount rose to a terrifying level during Ramadan, the month where we should realise that there is a segment of a society who are struggling to get food,” he said. – Bernama
