Anuga, the food and beverage trade show held in biennially in Cologne, Germany, has made common cause with 24 other sponsors in supporting Tafel Köln with the purchase of a new deep-freeze refrigerated vehicle. The 7.5-ton truck will enable the non-profit organization to collect larger quantities of food and provide greater support to needy people. Instead of the previous maximum four-euro pallet capacity of transporters in the fleet, the Kölner Tafel can now pick up — depending on the weight — up to 12-euro pallets at once. The truck will also be on the road beyond Cologne in NRW as part of the Tafel Köln’s distribution function.
“Anuga has supported the Cologne food bank for many years. Every two years, the food and beverages that are exhibited at the fair and not transported back to their respective home towns are made available to the association for collection. With the new larger vehicle, significantly more quantities can be collected in one go and, in terms of sustainability, an important contribution can be made in addressing the issue of food waste,” said Anuga Director Stefanie Mauritz.
Karin Fürhaupter, chairwoman of Tafel Köln (pictured in the middle of the photo above), added: “Since 1995, we have seen our task as collecting surplus food that is still in perfect condition and would otherwise be thrown away and distributing it to people in need, in line with our motto: ‘Distribute instead of destroy!’ Over the years, the demands on our work have grown, more and more citizens are making use of the help of Tafel Köln. The larger refrigerated vehicle makes our work much easier when collecting larger quantities directly from the manufacturer, the supplier or, for example, at trade fairs. Multiple trips with our smaller vans are also unnecessary, which is an additional contribution to environmental protection.”
