Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)
In
2017, under the INTERREG V-A Greece – Bulgaria 2014-2020 programme, the two
partner countries implemented the project entitled Supporting Social
Enterprises in combating poverty and social exclusion (Social Plate).
In
order to implement this project, the Civil Non-Profit Company under the name
Social Food Aid Civil Non-Profit Company was established under the leadership
of the Central Market of Thessaloniki S.A. (C.M.TH. S.A.) and the Technopolis
International Education Institute.
The idea of Social Plate was conceived by
C.M.TH. S.A. as a solution to the problems of poverty and social exclusion, and
to the need to protect the environment.
The programme aims to provide food for the
weaker members of society and long-term unemployed people with work, and to
limit food loss. An integral part of the project is to disseminate this
solution to all walks of life and actively involve them in changing their
attitude and mindset regarding food loss.
The traders of C.M.TH. S.A. deliver
non-marketable products to the Company's Organic Residue Management Office
every day, and under the supervision of the Quality Control Officer the
products are sorted into those suitable for consumption and those not. Then,
supported by volunteers from the institutions benefiting from the programme,
they are re-packaged. Regional social institutions (Social Grocery Stores,
Non-Governmental Organizations, Church Soup Kitchens, Collectives, etc.)
collaborating with the programme receive the recovered products and distribute
them, cooked or not, to vulnerable groups of our society. Therefore, refugees,
homeless and unemployed people, and those who are in need of food are provided
with meals thanks to the voluntary engagement of everyone working with Social
Plate.
The Social Plate team has handled 1813.307 tons of fruit and vegetables since the beginning of the project on 23/04/2018
until 31/12/2024 of which 1369.946 tons have been collected and offered to
our fellow citizens. Meanwhile, all this food was prevented from being turned
into organic waste. The organizations participating in the distribution (Social
Grocery Stores, NGOs, Foundations, and Church Soup Kitchens) exceed 70 and aim
to increase this number.
By the end of 2019, when the INTERREG V-A Greece
- Bulgaria 2014-2020 programme ended, C.M.TH. S.A. continued running Social
Plate and since November 2022 K.A.Th.C.M.TH. S.A. is co-beneficiary of the LIFE-IP CEI Greece project entitled Excess
food and food waste prevention demonstration actions, coordinated by the Green Fund of the Ministry of Environment. So at the end 2023 we have the following results.
In detail, Social Plate has handled every year
since 2018 until the end of 2024 the following:
| |
Pick-up (kg) |
Supply (kg) |
2024
|
369.012 |
299.767 |
| 2023 |
356.527 |
274.044 |
| 2022 |
275.701 |
217.587 |
| 2021 |
152.070 |
114.781 |
| 2020 |
193.762 |
140.099 |
| 2019 |
311.900 |
222.961 |
| 2018 |
154.335 |
100.707 |
| TOTAL |
1.813.307 |
1.369.946 |
We would like to thank all those who devote their time, effort and love to help.
