What would you think if you saw a cargo bike zipping through the city, fully loaded with surplus food? You might wonder where all that food comes from, and where it’s headed. This is CARE—Cargobike Action for Rescuing Edibles, a hyperlocal, cargo bike-based project focused on recovering surplus food from schools.
The CARE pilot is designed to collect excess food from public school canteens across the City of Milan. Using cargo bikes, the recovered food is delivered to beneficiary organizations, strategically located within micro-logistics clusters optimized for maximum efficiency. Beyond reducing food waste and supporting those in need, the pilot aims to demonstrate the efficiency and effectiveness of this approach compared to existing methods or other alternatives.
This initiative is part of the Action Plans framework, a strategic effort led by ICLEI and collaboratively developed by all Food Sharing Initiatives (FSIs) participating in CULTIVATE. These 12-month Action Plans are designed to foster innovation within each organization by setting smart objectives and detailing tasks that can be tested and replicated across FSIs as part of the CULTIVATE project.
On Wednesday, February 5th, the City of Milan celebrated the progress made across all active Food Hubs in the city. During this special event, Naima Comotti from Magma presented the CARE project, highlighting its impact and future potential.
Here is a video recap of the event:
Photo credits: City of Milan
