Sealed Air Invests in Gastromotiva to Improve Food Security Worldwide
Sealed Air (NYSE: SEE) announced a three-year partnership with Gastromotiva, a Brazilian nonprofit focused on social gastronomy to combat hunger and food waste. This collaboration aims to enhance education on sustainable packaging, provide job opportunities for vulnerable populations, and expand Gastromotiva's reach in Brazil and Mexico. Sealed Air's involvement will leverage its expertise in food packaging to tackle global food security challenges, addressing the stark reality that nearly 690 million people are currently hungry, a figure that has risen significantly in recent years.
- Partnership with Gastromotiva aligns with Sealed Air's focus on sustainability and food security.
- Investment will enhance education and workforce development initiatives, beneficial for vulnerable populations.
- Collaboration enables expansion of Gastromotiva's impact in Brazil and Mexico.
- No direct financial metrics or projections that indicate revenue impact from the partnership.
CHARLOTTE, N.C.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sealed Air Corporation (NYSE: SEE) today announced a three-year partnership with Gastromotiva, a nonprofit organization based in Brazil that uses the power of gastronomy, food, and education to address social inequality, improve nutrition education, fight hunger, eliminate food waste, and create local jobs.
Partnership and Collaboration
Since 2006, Gastromotiva has served more than 500,000 meals, recovered more than 220,000 pounds of food and engaged more than 100,000 people worldwide in nutrition education. Sealed Air’s investment will empower Gastromotiva to achieve food security goals that align across three pillars:
- Education: Sealed Air and Gastromotiva will co-create a global education module on sustainable packaging and food waste reduction for students to learn more about innovations that minimize food waste.
- Workforce Development: Sealed Air and Gastromotiva will develop a system to connect low-income youth and other vulnerable populations with Gastromotiva partners for job opportunities and career development.
- Expansion: Gastromotiva will standardize its educational methodology and develop an integrated educational platform for expansion to strategic locations in Brazil and Mexico, which will ensure vulnerable communities have access to the Gastromotiva network of NGOs and partners working to create a sustainable food system.
“Sealed Air is excited to partner with Gastromotiva to help further its expansion, education, and workforce development initiatives,” said Tobias Grasso, Sealed Air’s President of the Americas. “Now, more than ever, hunger is a critical issue and we are proud to use our expertise in food packaging, sustainability, food security, technology, and innovation to help solve this issue. Sealed Air’s mission is to leave our world better than we found it, and this partnership is a meaningful step in that direction.”
Food Security Around the World
A recent report by the United Nations estimates that nearly 690 million people are currently hungry – up by 10 million people in one year and by nearly 60 million in five years. COVID-19 has amplified food insecurity and hunger, deepening the crisis in affected areas and creating new hot spots across the world. At the same time, nearly one-third of the world’s food is wasted. Food production and supply chain interruptions, as well as loss of incomes globally, have compounded food security risks, creating another global crisis.
The Sealed Air/Gastromotiva collaboration and others like it are critical to addressing global food security issues. As a leader in the food packaging industry, Sealed Air’s decades of experience will assist Gastromotiva in its goal to reduce hunger and food waste for some of the world’s most vulnerable populations.
“Since 2006, all of our projects have used food as a tool for social change, what we call social gastronomy. Today Gastromotiva signs a three-year partnership with Sealed Air, which will enable us to multiply our impact not only in Brazil but worldwide while preserving the environment for future generations,” said David Hertz, founder of Gastromotiva. “With Sealed Air, we will expand our educational methodology, develop innovation and technology projects, and co-create an educational module on sustainability and waste reduction. With clear goals and focus on results, we seal, with much enthusiasm and gratitude, this relationship of great exchange and trust.” Hertz said.
About Sealed Air
Sealed Air is in business to protect, to solve critical packaging challenges, and to leave our world better than we found it. Our portfolio of leading packaging solutions includes CRYOVAC® brand food packaging, SEALED AIR® brand protective packaging, AUTOBAG® brand automated systems, and BUBBLE WRAP® brand packaging, which collectively enable a safer, more efficient food supply chain and protect valuable goods shipped around the world. Sealed Air generated
About Gastromotiva
Gastromotiva, through connections, collaborations and partnerships, offers professional training, creates opportunities for people living in a situation of socioeconomic vulnerability and awareness about the way of consumption and production of food, throughout the food chain. Based on the experience accumulated over more than a decade of work and social impact in Brazil, Mexico, South Africa and El Salvador, Gastromotiva's methodology model proved to be adaptable in different social contexts, but that somehow face the same economic issues. Thus, Gastromotiva’s scalability consists of methodizing its best practices and inclusive and innovative way of teaching Gastronomy and, at the same time - through cross-sector partnerships and a network of actors - creating opportunities in the job market for people in vulnerability.
