Food surplus as charitable provision: Obstacles to re-introducing food as a commons

This chapter discusses how the contemporary food system, marked by corporate concentration, the excessive supply of energy-dense packaged products and resulting in rising volumes of waste, requires, in the ‘age of sustainability’, new means of disposal. It explores the rise of ‘smart app tech entrepreneurs’ that serve as intermediaries between suppliers of ‘surplus’ food and charitable partners willing to distribute this amongst their client base, the ‘deserving poor’. The acquisition of foods outside that of the large food retailer surplus redistribution efforts is also prevalent in the Irish context. The global agri-food system has been lauded for its scale, efficiency and capacity to deliver more calories for a lower proportion of consumer spending than ever before, which has shaped the diets of a majority of the world’s population. The chapter concludes with a discussion on how these insights will help in developing a more durable case for transitioning towards a commons-based food system.