In 2022, Singapore generated 813,000 tonnes of food waste. However, only 18% of this, comprising mostly homogeneous by-products from food manufacturing processes, was recycled. The remaining food waste was incinerated at waste-to-energy plants with non-food waste.
In response to this pressing issue, DBS Foundation and the National Environment Agency (NEA) launched the inaugural Hungry for Change Challenge in 2022, to empower youth to develop and pilot innovative solutions that will prevent and/or reduce food waste in Singapore.
This year, the Challenge has expanded to involve corporate partners Koufu, McDonald’s and The Social Kitchen, as well as tackle the issue of food packaging, which makes up about one-third of domestic waste disposed in Singapore. The partners have helped to co-develop the Challenge’s problem statements, with the aim of helping find innovative solutions to manage both food and food packaging waste. The partners will also work with the selected teams to pilot their solutions.
In this 2nd edition of the Challenge, the project teams with the five most innovative and impactful ideas around reimaging and reducing food and packaging waste will receive total funding of up to SGD 125,000 from DBS Foundation. The teams will also receive mentorship from DBS and have opportunities to consult with NEA and our corporate partners, and benefit from their expertise.
Do visit the Hungry for Change Challenge page, for more information and participate in the challenge!
