Siticibo is a non-profit organization that redistributes food that would otherwise go to waste to the entities that feed the needy here in Milan. Unsold food that is still perfectly edible is picked up from donor institutions (school and business cafeterias, hotels, supermarkets, etc) and delivered to groups that feed those in need (homeless shelters, soup kitchens, refuges, and the like). Cecelia Canepa and Bianca Massarelli, co-founders, and Giuliana Malaguti, operations manager, told us the story of how they saw the need, succeeded in getting a law passed by the Italian parliament, and now oversee an organization that redistributes a full ton of food every day, that would otherwise end up in the bin.

The origins of Siticibo
The Siticibo project began as a cooperative effort, which included the Fondazione Banco Alimentare-ONLUS, Cecilia and Bianca. Three existing conditions provided the basis for Siticibo’s launch:

• large quantities of food were being left unsold and wasted by food services every day
• demand was steadily increasing for food for the needy
• the “Good Samaritan Law” had been passed due to the efforts of Cecilia, which allowed them to provide the much-needed link of pick-up and delivery of the food

Volunteering in her daughter’s school cafeteria, Cecelia saw first-hand the food that was perfectly edible and wholesome being discarded, since it had lost it’s commercial value, and wondered how to get it to those in need at various charity organizations. When she learned that there was no legal provision for that transfer, she turned to City Harvest in New York for solutions and went to them to learn how their organization worked and to profit from their lessons learned.

The "Good Samaritan" law
Returning to Milan, her first goal was to get a “Good Samaritan” law passed in Parliament that would allow her to create a Milan version of City Harvest. Amazingly enough, this was accomplished in only one year!

This law is meant to encourage and facilitate the collection of food and that is still perfectly edible, its only defect being that it has lost its commercial value. It is also meant to promote the empowerment of those who get involved in these collection activities, in the awareness that the food is highly perishable and that there is a delicate relationship with the end consumer: people who are often in a weakened state and suffering from ill health.

Siticibo in Milan
Together with Bianca, she started creating Siticibo’s service:

• collecting food that is cooked but not served along with fruit, vegetables and baked goods including bread and pastries
• ensuring that the food was handled according to sanitary regulations and remained wholesome and appetising
• delivering to various charities that in turn distributed food to those who needed it most urgently
• managing the distribution network of sending the specially-equipped vans to the various pick-up points and delivery locations
• monitoring that food safety procedures are adhered to every step of the way, from donor to transport by Siticibo volunteers to delivery to recipients within a matter of hours

Currently, Siticibo picks up surplus food from:

• 10 Corporate cafeterias - buffet meals
• 90 School dining halls - bread, fruit and dessert
• 3 hotels - surplus breakfast products and buffet and catering items

With 65 volunteers, they deliver to 45 charitable locations and in 2006 handled 116,620 buffet meal portions, 52 tons of bread and 56 tons of fruit.

What can you do?
We asked Cecelia, Bianca and Giuliana, how can we help as individuals? Their suggestions:

• help us collect food in company canteens in the early hours of the day (7:30-12:00 or 8:00-10:30)
• help us collect fresh products (bread and fruit) from school dining halls in the early hours of the afternoon (1.30-4:30)
• in your neighbourhood: become a Siticibo promoter, personally participating in food collection from and delivery to those in your area
• at school: if you are a teacher, make children aware, teaching them to respect food and help us collect surplus dining hall food
• in a company cafeteria: be a Siticibo promoter and/or help us in the collection process
• if you are an expert in economics, law, nutrition, logistics, communication, marketing and/or event organisation: we need you
• if you are a good driver and know the streets of Milan: you can help Siticibo drive the vehicles with which food is collected every day
• financially: neither the donors or recipients are requested to pay any monies for the service, but the transportation and administrative costs do exist

Companies, institutions and individuals who want to help Siticibo can find out more on their website: www.siticibo.it. For more information, email siticibo@bancoalimentare.it

PWA extends their thanks to Cecilia, Bianca and Giuliana for their fascinating, and inspirational presentation.

• Download the presentation, Bring the Good Samaritan to Milan (pdf file, MEMBERS ONLY)
• Visit www.siticibo.it
• Contact Siticibo, siticibo@bancoalimentare.it