On May 12 2023, a large audience gathered to celebrate the inauguration of a new Food Bank in Namur, Belgium. His highness Prince Laurent of Belgium was present, as well as Karine Lalieux, Minister of Pensions, Social Integration and of the Fight Against Poverty. The Belgian governors of the Namur province and of the Luxembourg province also participated in the event.
The Namur Food Bank is now the fourth warehouse of the organization Banque Alimentaire de Namur-Luxembourg and will have the capacity to stock about 700 pallets, of which 130 can be refrigerated or even frozen. Expending the capacity of the local Food Bank became necessary in light of the constant increase in the demand for food aid. The socio-economic crisis induced by the Covid-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine has only exacerbated this trend.
The new premises will also allow the Food Bank to experiment with a “valorisation and training” kitchen: an innovative approach of Food Banks to tackle food waste. The kitchen will allow to transform fruits and vegetables which are edible but aesthetically unattractive into meals and products with a long shelf life, such as jams or cans.
Currently, the Banque Alimentaire de Namur-Luxembourg supports roughly 15 000 beneficiaries every year through 80 different local organizations. This Food Bank is one of the 9 Food Banks of the Fédération Belge des Banques Alimentaires/ Belgische Federatie van Voedselbanken (FEBA Member in Belgium) whose president, Piet Vanthemsche congratulated all the volunteers who make food banking possible.
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