Restaurants throw away a lot of food on a regular basis – we all know this fact. In Kochi, India, one restaurant owner, Minu Pauline, noticed a woman taking food from the garbage bin and eating it. She knew something had to be done about that problem. Pauline was also struck that night when she realized that her restaurant had made a ton of food that evening which could have easily gone to the hungry woman.
Pauline runs the restaurant called Pappadavada, and she came up with an excellent idea! She put a refrigerator outside her restaurant where they put all the leftovers from the day. Homeless and hungry people can then come and eat whatever they want from the fridge.
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The refrigerator has become a free vending machine, and it is open 24/7. Pauline puts about 75 to 80 portions of food inside every day – sometimes she will put 100 inside. Her patrons will put their leftovers in it as well.
Pauline told the Huffington Post that while money is yours, resources belong to society. That is her message – if you are wasting money, you are wasting resources – don’t waste the food. Pauline also urges the community to put leftover food in the refrigerator.
She does discourage people from buying food and putting it in the fridge – she says while that is very generous, it is the excess food that should go in the free fridge. The refrigerator sits under the shade of a neighboring tree was first set outside Pappadavade on March 23 and now has the nickname “nanma maram” which means “tree of goodness.”
Share away, people!