WHEN Suzanne Mooney moved to Malaysia from the United Kingdom in 2014, she became involved in charity work. She was struck by the food insecurity experienced by the less fortunate.
With that in mind, Mooney created The Lost Food Project in 2015 to bridge the hunger gap, whilst also reducing food wastage. She and her dedicated team of volunteers collected boxes of surplus groceries from supermarkets and food manufacturers.
These groceries were then given to established charity organisations, and provided nutritious food to thousands of vulnerable persons.
In 2018, Mooney left Malaysia when her husband was posted to Zurich. However, the volunteers have carried on with the project.
The NGO is still thriving today. Over the span of five years, it has served more than four million meals.
âToday, we are contributing to at least 56 charities from orphanages to refugee and homeless [shelters], as well as thousands of B40 communities from PPR and low cost housing units,â says Mohd Syazwan Mokhtar, who is the general manager of the project.
On a weekly basis, they are feeding 40,000 meals to at least 10,000 vulnerable people.
âSome of these people cannot afford [to have] a meal a day,â he says.
He remembers that the first supermarket to contribute to the project was Jasons Food Hall in Bangsar. Today, The Lost Food project has at least 10 to 15 organisations that contribute regularly.
Indirectly, the project is also addressing the issue of waste in the Malaysian food industry.
