Picture yourself enjoying food from a hotel. With the abundance of dishes on display at the buffet, do you ever think about what happens to the leftovers? Scholars for Sustenance (SOS) tackles this issue by collecting good-quality surplus food and repurposing it to feed communities. Join us as we get to know this organization and its mission to preserve the environment through food rescues.
SOS Team at Nueva Vizcaya | Photo from SOS Philippines
Scholars for Sustenance (SOS) is an environmental non-profit organization founded by Bo H. Holmgreen. In a life-changing experience in Bangkok, Thailand, Holmgreen noticed how much food waste was generated by a five-star hotel. When he asked the employee where the food went, the employee replied “It goes into the trash.”
Realizing the staggering amounts of food that is wasted every day, Holmgreen used his experience as an entrepreneur and aimed to optimize food surplus, establishing SOS Thailand in 2016. Within 9 years, the organization has expanded to Bali, Jakarta, and Manila, rescuing 17 million kilograms of surplus food and serving 71 million meals to communities around Southeast Asia.
SOS Philippines team preparing the food donation to give to KaSaMa Ka community | Photo from SOS Philippines
“We started here in the Philippines last October 2022,” shared Patricia Rabal, the fundraising and partnership manager of SOS Philippines, in an interview with SEA Wave. “What we do is collect surplus food from different food establishments, and we distribute this to our partner communities.”
While at first this may sound alarm bells in your mind, Patricia also emphasized the quality of food that they receive during their rescue missions, saying, “…the food we collect is of good quality. If you can recall the times that you see food items in the grocery with torn labels, or packaging with dents on the boxes—these are some of the examples of the food that we collect. In terms of edibility, the food we collect is very much edible and safe to eat.”
Aside from addressing food shortage, SOS Philippines is also concerned with sustainability. “We do this because we want to prevent these food items from ending up in landfills, where they can emit greenhouse gasses that are harmful to the environment,” shared Patricia. The gasses emitted from landfills turns into methane, which contributes greatly to climate change. In the Philippines alone, 2.95 million tonnes of food waste was produced in 2024 according to the UN Environment Programme (UNEP) Food Waste Index Report.
To help with its goals, SOS partners with companies and residential centers that can help provide surplus food. “ Of course, with some food donors, they have their hesitations, which we understand. That’s why we give importance to food safety. So that’s what we assure them, that we handle the food safely. And our team is also trained in food safety handling,” Patricia shared.
On the flipside, SOS partners with communities that will be given the surplus food. “How we select communities is based on their willingness to collaborate. The food we give is not just a donation. We want to partner with communities that understand the type of food that we collect…and there’s also the integrity that the food we give them will actually go to those who need it,” said Patricia.
The Food Rescue Van from Ford Philippines | Photo from SOS Philippines
As of our interview, SOS Philippines has helped 150 communities, although it is not a regular occurrence or donation for each recipient, since they have to match the food with the right beneficiaries. For instance, if the organization receives a surplus of sweets, they cannot donate them to an elderly home. It takes time and alignment of goals to allocate surplus food to those who will need and appreciate it most.
Once the food has been properly matched with beneficiaries, Food Rescue Ambassadors will collect the food from donors and distribute them to partner communities. Patricia also mentioned that the food delivery schedules vary depending on the availability of surplus food. One day can have as many as three deliveries to communities, but sometimes it takes a week to deliver the same amount of food.
Despite these challenges, a day spent with SOS Philippines is a fulfilling one. “The cliche that you know you can feed people, it’s really that. Because when you interact with the communities, sometimes you really can see their need. As a person who knows about rising prices of food items, you can really see how big a help it is for them,” shared Patricia.
Patricia Rabal from SOS Philippines and SEA Wave Story Surfer Naomi Grace Cavaneyro
When asked if she had a message to the readers, Patricia highlighted the importance of awareness and proper planning. “It all starts with awareness. Awareness that there actually is a problem with food waste and hunger. Because when you think about that, that’s when you start to be mindful…Sometimes, even I am guilty of taking food for granted. So plan what to eat, what to buy, how to store the food. And of course, eat your leftovers.”
Learn more about SOS Philippines at www.scholarsofsustenance.org and find out how you can reduce food waste, one plate at a time.
SEA Wave Magazine’s SEAtizens initiative is a series of inspiring stories of people in Southeast Asia who champion the human spirit by demonstrating courage, ingenuity, generosity, and selflessness.