The FOOD BANK OF BOLIVIA emerged from the idea of two active students from the UNIVERSIDAD DEL VALLE (UNIVALLE) dedicated to the development of social and environmental impact projects, who in 2017 decided to enhance that impact by challenging themselves to found the FIRST FOOD BANK of the country, with the firm objective of eliminating hunger in Bolivia.
From the beginning, they knew that it would not be an easy task, which is why they decided to build a team of young people with the same vision and enthusiasm to see Bolivia grow; This is how, the Food Bank of Bolivia founder team was born, made up of eleven students from different careers, led by Nicole Alejandra Guerrero Ruiz and Jheysson Yohelit Cruz Aliaga, current General Directors of the FOOD BANK OF BOLIVIA.
Subsequently, along with UNIVALLE, the founder team of the FOOD BANK dedicated itself to the development of a series of investigations on hunger and food waste in Bolivia with the purpose of justifying the need to implement the first food bank in Bolivia.
After six months of research, the founder team obtained surprising results and concluded that around 15% of the food produced and sold in Bolivia is lost and wasted at different stages of the food chain. Regarding the number of people suffering from hunger in Bolivia, the Food Bank was based on the report issued by the FAO in 2015, which established that 19.8% of the Bolivian population was undernourished.
Having as results, on the one hand, alarming effects on the investigations carried out and, on the other, a team determined to create the first food bank, on July 7, 2018, under the name of La Manzana Roja, the first food drive was carried out and took place in different local markets of Cochabamba. That day, 87 kg of fruits and vegetables were collected and delivered to the first institution served by the Food Bank: Asociación Villa Libertad, a shelter that cares for fifteen children.
Initially, there was skepticism from the food companies and organizations visited by the founder team, however, thanks to the hard work, perseverance, and professionalism demonstrated by the young team, organizations, wholesalers, food companies and volunteers joined this noble cause allowing goals to be achieved beyond dream.
This is how the Food Bank of Bolivia, which emerged from a group of university students who had very limited resources, is currently a consolidated and recognized foundation both nationally and internationally. It has a permanent staff of twenty people; the trust of the most recognized food companies in Bolivia and the world; the support of the associations of wholesale merchants and farmers of the main supply centers of Cochabamba; a large community of volunteers and a sustainable, transparent and efficient system, which allows the Food Bank to serve a beneficiary population of more than 28,500 people nationwide.
