A chef decides to donate food left by his customers to the animals in local shelters

by Alison Forde

February 09, 2021

A chef decides to donate food left by his customers to the animals in local shelters
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There are many four-legged friends who don't have a roof to sleep under, enough food and water and a loving family to care for them every day; they are our stray animals, and if we all wasted less food we could certainly use it to make our four-legged friends happier. 28-year-old chef Jamal Al Breiki who lives and works in Abu Dhabi, had a great idea and is himself an animal lover.

via Friday Magazine

The Doggy Bag Initiative UAE/Facebook

The Doggy Bag Initiative UAE/Facebook

Jamal lives with four adopted dogs at home and, working as a chef in a restaurant, he knows very well how much prepared food is then wasted; for this reason he has launched an extraordinary initiative called The Doggy Bag Initiative, which other hotels and restaurants in the city have gradually joined.

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The Doggy Bag Initiative UAE/Facebook

The Doggy Bag Initiative UAE/Facebook

This very interesting initiative supports the dogs and cats in the local shelters by carefully separating the leftover food in the hotels and luxury restaurants in the city who participate in Jamal's idea: about a third of the leftover food is chosen and selected according to the healthiness of the food for the dogs or cats: so the staff in the scheme put aside meat, chicken, fish and vegetables avoiding foods with too many condiments, sauces, cheese and sweets of all kinds.

Friday Magazine/YouTube

Friday Magazine/YouTube

Jamal said: "My business partner and I collect food, chop it and deliver it directly to shelters. We need to make sure the food doesn't contain bones, sauces or other ingredients that could be harmful to animals."

It must be said that the initiative started by this starred chef is coming to fruition, and now many hotels and restaurants in Abu Dhabi are joining with great enthusiasm: and the local refuges are very grateful!

Friday Magazine/YouTube

Friday Magazine/YouTube

The 28-year-old chef explains that this initiative not only creates new hope and joy for all these dogs and cats waiting for a family to adopt them, but once again emphasizes the importance of food and not wasting it: "It is important to keep them healthy and in good shape, but sometimes dogs get depressed and don't want to eat the food they are provided with. They are more likely to enjoy eating meat. This helps them maintain their strength so that their health does not deteriorate while they are in the shelter."

Friday Magazine/YouTube

Friday Magazine/YouTube

We hope that this beautiful initiative will cross the borders of the city of Abu Dhabi and become a trend all over the world; in the meantime ... well done Jamal!

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