1.000.000 kilos of food from "Boroume at the Farmers’ Market" to charitable organizations

Beginning in 2015, Boroume’s program "Boroume at the Farmers’ Market" has brought together sellers of 43 farmers’ markets in Athens and Thessaloniki and with the help of hundreds of volunteers it has saved more than 1,000,000 kilos of unsold, consumable fruits and vegetables, and has offered the food to 90 charitable organizations.

Since its launch in November 2015, "Boroume at the Farmers’ Market", the volunteers of Boroume and various charitable organizations visit the collaborating farmers’ markets on a weekly basis at the end of their working day and collect the unsold, consumable fruits and vegetables, which vendors choose to offer to charitable organizations instead of throwing them away.

In the more than 5,500 actions that have taken place since the beginning of the program, the sellers of 43 farmers markets in Athens and Thessaloniki have offered more than 1,000,000 kilos of fruits and vegetables to local charities, demonstrating over time a strong sense of solidarity and support that pervades them as well as environmental sensitivity since these usable foods do not reach landfills. With Boroume's volunteers and the receiving charitable organizations, these foods are made available directly to those in need in an organized, systematic and dignified manner.

This aspect of saving and offering food with the "Boroume at the Farmers’ Market" program has been continuously supported for 8 years by The Hellenic Initiative Australia, the charity organization of the Greek community in Australia, which we thank from the bottom of our hearts.

Anna Kampouropoulou, head of the "Boroume at the Farmers’ Market" program, says: "Every year, Greek households throw away more than 930,000 tons of food, the majority of which are fruits and vegetables. This is happening while, at the same time, 11.5% of the population in the country is facing food insecurity. With the vendors of the street markets in Athens and Thessaloniki as allies and the generosity and social solidarity they demonstrate, the volunteers of the program "Boroume at the Farmers’ Market" together with the collaborating charitable organizations have been making a great effort over the last 8 years so that part of the aforementioned food that might be wasted ends up in people who need it and find it difficult to obtain it. Our gratitude to all those who support our effort is boundless. They give us the good energy and strength we need to continue our work."

The Presidents (alphabetically) of the Federations of Public Markets of Athens and Thessaloniki state:

The President of the Federation of Associations of Professional Producers and Sellers of Public Markets of Macedonia-Thessaly-Thrace Mr. Angelos Deretzis states:

"Farmers' markets over time do their best to systematically support people in need and not waste food. The vendors of the street markets of Thessaloniki support and will continue to actively support the work of Boroume with a sense of solidarity, social and environmental consciousness."

The President of the Federation of Farmers' Associations of Central & Western Macedonia, Thessaly and Thrace, Mr. Vasilios Makridis, states that:

“The farmers' markets support our fellow human beings daily with their offer of basic necessities. They are and will remain by the side of all vulnerable groups in every possible way, actively supporting households in financial difficulty.”

The President of the Panhellenic Federation of Associations of Producers of Agricultural Products of Farmers' Markets (POSPAPLA) Mr. Pantelis Moschos says:

“In the context of our cooperation with Boroume and its mission to reduce food waste, the farmers’ markets of Attica and Thessaloniki and especially the producers of farmers' markets, offer agricultural products for people in need, while aiming at not to waste usable surplus food. We will continue our efforts in this direction in the future, with a sense of social solidarity."

The President of the Pan-Attica Federation of Sellers of Farmers’ Markets (POSPLA) Mr. Dimitris Mouliatos says:

"POSPLA and the professional sellers of the sector, with a sense of solidarity and humanity, continue to extend our hand to every fellow human being in need, in collaboration with the program "Boroume at the Farmers’ Market". This initiative has been warmly responded to for 8 years by our vendors with the aim of reducing food waste, as a key pillar of the strategy we serve in the farmers' markets for the development of a sustainable food system. The drastic reduction of food waste for us is the biggest incentive to continue in the same direction. We thank the Boroume team, which we have as our constant ally, since over time they contributed to the promotion of the social face of the farmers' markets".

Boroume is a non-profit organization with the sole purpose of reducing food waste and combating malnutrition in Greece. It has been operating since the end of 2011 and since then it has saved and offered more than 80,000,000 portions of food to charitable organizations throughout Greece. Boroume approaches the issue of waste holistically through information and public awareness programs on waste prevention and practically through programs to save and offer food at every stage of the food chain.

More information about the press release:

Anna Kambouropoulou

[email protected], 210 3237805