About a third of the food produced for Swiss consumption went to waste last year, according to the food bank foundation Schweizer Tafel/Table Suisse. That is the equivalent of 2.6 million tonnes of food. Five percent of the losses occurred in the retail trade.
The foundation collected 3,820 tonnes of food that was not for sale but still in perfect condition – a 5.6% increase relative to 2018.
That surplus food was delivered free of charge to around 500 social institutions and food distribution points. In total, the quantity of goods corresponded to over eight million meals for people in need, according to the foundation.
As of December 2001, the Table Suisse project is located in twelve regions of Switzerland, has 36 vehicles and distributes about 16 tons of food every day.
Fighting food waste with your eyes, nose and tongue
This content was published on
Two-thirds of the food thrown away in Switzerland could have been eaten. A new label on foodstuffs wants consumers to be much more discerning.
Around 670,000 people are affected by poverty in Switzerland, according to the Federal Statistics Office. Poverty rose from 7.5% to 8.2% of the population between 2016 and 2017, an increase of almost 10%.
In 2018, the poverty line averaged CHF2,293 per month for a single person and 3968CHF per month for a household with two adults and two children.
More
More
Experiencing the stress of poverty in Switzerland
This content was published on
I wanted to find out what it was like living on the Swiss minimum subsistence level for a month.
Beer sales in Switzerland watered down by bad weather
This content was published on
The past brewing year fell through in Switzerland, partly due to the bad weather. Beer sales shrank again. For the first time, per capita consumption fell below the 50 liter mark.
Compensation for Syrian after pregnant wife denied help on Swiss train
This content was published on
Switzerland’s Federal Court has partially upheld the appeal of a Syrian family being deported from Switzerland to Italy in 2014. The man now also receives compensation.
Swiss-EU negotiations: Cassis to meet Sefcovic in Bern
This content was published on
Swiss Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis will meet the Vice-President of the EU Commission, Maros Sefcovic, in Bern on Wednesday.
Heavy snowfall in Switzerland causes traffic chaos and accidents
This content was published on
The heavy snowfall late on Thursday and during the night into Friday led to traffic chaos and many accidents in many regions of Switzerland.
Chimpanzee behaviours passed down through generations
This content was published on
Some of the complex behaviours of chimpanzees have been passed down and refined over generations. These include the combination of several tools for foraging.
More than 600,000 rounds of Swiss sniper ammunition reach Ukraine
This content was published on
Sniper ammunition from Swiss P Defence reached Ukraine via a Polish company in July 2023, reported SRF Investigativ on Thursday, citing official information.
Switzerland launches national digital inclusion alliance
This content was published on
The Swiss government launched the Swiss Digital Inclusion Alliance on Thursday with the goal of giving as many people as possible access to digital services.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.