KUWAIT: With the aim of reducing food waste and helping people in need, "Fridges of Kuwait” has emerged as a platform on Instagram to bridge the gap between food donors and recipients living in the country. Distributed among various areas of Kuwait are more than 100 free food fridges placed by individuals, mosques, government, nonprofit and private organizations.
Usually, they are stocked with food and beverages including homemade meals, fruits, juices, water, etc to keep them in good condition, inviting anyone to take what they need to satiate their hunger, said Farid Jaberi, one of the founders of "Fridges of Kuwait”. Jaberi belongs to a group of young professionals who wanted to take their acts of social responsibility to the next level by building a social media presence for the fridge initiative in Kuwait. While the fridges don’t belong to them, they have certainly captivated attention in a way that urged them to provide a sustainable source of support and development for them.
Even though the free food fridges serve many people in need, the founders of the platform believe they still need recognition by more people, more cleanliness, and most importantly, they need more food. "We wanted to promote the idea and give people different ways on how they can use this account, reach out to people in need and educate the younger generation on the importance of active kindness and giving back to others,” said Jaberi.
To fulfill these goals, they tried to provide an easier way for donors and recipients to reach out to the closest fridge to their homes by attaching a Google sheet on the Instagram account’s biography that includes more than 100 fridge locations in Kuwait. The gathering of these locations in one place was a very challenging yet efficient group effort that the founders of the account and followers equally contributed to, as whenever any of them passed by a fridge, they would simply add its location to the sheet.
The purpose of the account extended to communicating effective ways to help in maximizing the benefits of the fridges by sharing helpful tips on maintaining their cleanliness, removing any food that’s not fit for consumption, sharing ideas of the different types of food that’s suitable for storage and encouraging the writing of foods’ expiry dates on their packages before stocking.
With the social media platform gaining more exposure, multiple meal subscription companies, food and beverage companies and restaurants have provided "Fridges of Kuwait” with around 100 meals a day to show their support for the initiative, and at the same time avoid wastage of near-expiry foodstuff. Besides, even individuals showed their interest in the idea by posting photos and tagging the account whenever they fill the empty shelves of the fridges, as such acts are inspiring for other people to do the same.
However, currently, these actions are not as committed as they used to be. Jaberi noted the need for having more content creators and more collaborations with food companies and restaurants to keep fulfilling the initial goal behind the platform’s existence, which is stocking as many fridges as possible.
Jaberi encourages everyone to always think of others whenever they go the grocery store by buying a couple of extra things to add to the fridge while on their way home, reminding them that this simple and effortless gesture can help in creating a meaningful impact on people’s lives.