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We collected some information, so that you can avoid some common= mistakes and will have your local foodsharing initiative flourishing! We w= ant you to succeed and therefore share our experiences with you, but we, of= course, also are aware of extremely differing circumstances in different a= reas of the world, so don't hesitate to adapt our approach to your situatio= n as much as you see fit!
And please tell us how this all works out for you!
=E2=86=92 Contact us via mail! foodsaving@yunity.org!
=E2=86=92 Join our team chat for direct communication: https:= //slackin.yunity.org/
We wish you all the best for your foodsaving and sh= aring! Thank you very much for your will to fight food waste together with = us!
Cooperations with stores, restaurants and every kind of business that ha= ndles food are the core component of foodsaving. They are built on per= sonal contact and trust and never involve money.
Every business that handles food can be approached and asked for a coope= ration. Be it a supermarket, a restaurant, a canteen, stands at farmer= =E2=80=99s markets, a farm, a food wholesale, a street food stand or w= hatever you can think of or find in your area. It is useful though, to answ= er some questions before choosing a business:
Also, some criteria classify businesses as more likely to cooperate. Sto= res that
Like always, these are just vague guidelines to give you some kind of or=
ientation in case you have no idea where to start. If you already have=
a store in mind, and it happens to not fit above-mentioned
categories, no worries - just go ahead!
Always try to talk in person to the person in charge. The key to success=
is confidence: You have a very good reason to ask for cooperation! Ju=
st be prepared and then you can convey it!
It is useful to bring some printed background information on food=
waste in general and positive press regarding already existing cooper=
ations. It also can be a good idea to first call the store and set a date f=
or the meeting since it can make you appear more professional, but thi=
s - as always - depends on the store and the general circumstances: Is=
it a rather bourgeois store that puts emphasis on being professional and o=
rganized? Then adapt to this setting and be as organized and professio=
nal as you can to please the manager and staff! Is it more relaxed and=
wants to be seen as chill and cool? Then be chill and cool yourself and&nb=
sp;they=E2=80=99ll like you!
What to bring:
As a general tip: Just assume that nobody wants to senselessly waste per= fectly fine food, because it mostly is true! Throwing away goods in to= tally acceptable state hurts the people who have to do it, so the empl= oyees are on your side most of the time anyways. For the higher-ups, who ma= ybe don=E2=80=99t need to face the direct act of wasting, you can alwa= ys take the detour to talk about money. Every ingredient and product t= hat gets thrown away costs the business money, so why just waste it? On top= of that, disposal of garbage is expensive, too! If the store decides = to cooperate with you, they can even save money, because you take away= a good part of what would have been waste before. Also, if the store = wants you to, you can tell everyone that they participate and how amazing t= his is! That this progressive business understands its role in modern = society and doesn=E2=80=99t shy away from taking responsibility to help&nbs= p;stop the waste (or something like that=E2=80=A6).
A lot of times you will meet managers, who like the idea of foodsharing = but say, that they don't throw away anything, that they already cooperate w= ith a food bank or that they will give you a call in case there is somethin= g to pick up. These are definitely good points and you should react in an a= ppreciative manner, but still try to get them to cooperate with you on a re= gular basis, if you have the feeling that it would be worth it. Here are so= me examples of how to deal with the before-mentioned situations:
"It's great that you are aware of the problem and don't waste food on a = regular basis! But maybe our definitions of 'nothing' vary, because,you kno= w, we'd also come by for two tomatoes and if there's really nothing to save= , we are not disappointed but rather glad that you manage your business so = well. How about we just try out a tiny cooperation, where we come by once a= week for example and see how it goes? Like I said, you have nothing to los= e and if there's really nothing to pick up we are even happier."
"It's great that you are aware of the problem and already donate the sur= plus to the food bank! But does the food bank really take everythi= ng? What about already expired products or food where the cold chain w= as slightly broken? We consider a lot more food as edible as the food bank = does and there are probably some products, that we would gladly save, which= are rejected by them. And if there's really nothing to save, we are not di= sappointed but rather happy that you manage your business so well. How abou= t we just try out a tiny cooperation, where we come by once a week for exam= ple and see how it goes? Like I said, you have nothing to lose and if there= 's really nothing to pick up we are even happier."
"That is very nice of you, but we know that running a business is stress= ful at times and that one can easily forget about giving a call, especially= when it is a new arrangement. For us it is way more secure to just call yo= u ourselves and see, if we can save some food and if there's really no= thing to save, we are not disappointed but rather glad that you manage your= business so well. How about we just try out a tiny cooperation, where we c= ome by once a week for example and see how it goes? Like I said, you have n= othing to lose and if there's really nothing to pick up we are even happier= ."
You got a store to cooperate, congratulations! From now on, just be nice=
, reliable and do what you told them you would, so that they keep liki=
ng you and your initiative.
To make sure every pick-up gets carried out as planned you need to properly=
organize your foodsaving group, send enough people to take everything=
offered in one go and be able to substitute short-term pick-up cancel=
lations.
Tasks to fulfill:
Ways to succeed:
Keep in mind!
Like everything you learn from text, this also is just an opinion on how= things like this could be handled. If you think you know better, just= follow your gut and go ahead, really! We didn=E2=80=99t plan on restrictin= g people in any way! The sole purpose of these pages is to provide inf= ormation on how this topic can be approached, based= loosely on the experiences of German foodsharing and/or some of its member= s.
Foodsavers are to behave in a nice and polite way when interacting with = employees of stores. To get more clarity on what this actually means, = please consult the following lists.
A Foodsaver behaves unprofessional when s(he)
After pointing out the worst mistakes above, we=E2=80=99d now like to gi= ve some constructive advice on how to establish the most pleasant atmo= sphere possible while dealing with employees of stores.
The essence of professionalism
= span>While at a pick-up, saving food is our main job and goal and any other i=
nterest of ours is not important. We do not try to promote our world-v=
iew, belief system or any other agenda that may also be something dear=
to us, at the same time as saving food.
Professionalism in general simply boils down to that: Following only o=
ne agenda and ignoring anything that could be distracting and keeping the p=
rofessional from doing the job.