** PRESS RELEASE **
SLOW FOOD, RANA PLAZA SURVIVORS & TOURISM EXPERTS OF BANGLADESH JOIN LIVE WEBINAR IN SUPPORT OF LOVEDESH’S #IREMEMBER1.3BN & #SHUTUPFORFOODWASTE GLOBAL CAMPAIGN
15 MAY 2020 (LONDON)
British company Lovedesh, with the support of Slow Food UK has launched #IRemember1.3bn and #ShutUpForFoodWaste to promote #ZeroWaste=HeroicWaste global campaign. Also backing it are the survivors of Rana Plaza, grassroots artisans and tourism experts in Bangladesh, who have been working with its CEO Yasmin Choudhury and her daughter Amber-Choudhury- Kaye.
Both Lovedesh, an award winning not-for-profit social enterprise on a mission to POP (Protect Our Planet) and Slow Food are committed in supporting the producers of ethically, organic made food produce in UK and globally.
Lovedesh is run by Yasmin and Amber, a British mother and daughter design duo, who have designed the second in a series of not-for-profit Lovedesh® Tee, (the “kindest” & “rarest” t-shirt in the world), to help promote #IRemember1.3bn to combat food waste through the sale of an ethically made fashion t-shirt. Since 2012, Lovedesh has been working at grassroots to support the1,136 survivors and 2,000+ injured in the infamous fashion tragedy of the Rana Plaza factory collapse. And artisans, seamstresses, tailors and destitute rural villagers. They also work to mentor and lift up grassroots village farmers, rural women who are amongst the poorest in Bangladesh. And plan to expand globally to Africa, Latin America as well as in their home country of UK.
In a zoom webinar by Lovedesh, that was hosted at 2.30pm GMT/7.30pm Bangladesh time, CEO Yasmin Choudhury was joined by co-host Shane Holland of
Slow Food. She and the panel and its audience held a one-minute silence to remember the modern-day slavery element, poverty and impact on climate caused by the unethical aspects of the global food supply chain.
Choudhury commenting, said: “Globally 1.3bn tonnes of food waste is hurting our planet, that is worth $1 trillion. This is unacceptable. For the first time, I am pleased to curate experts from Bangladesh’s tourism sector to join Lovedesh and global sustainability global experts to discuss what solutions can be delivered to tackle ever increasing modern-day slavery, climate change, poverty in times of pandemic.”
Shane Holland of Slow Food, said: “There is enough food to feed the planet. But with the problems of a pandemic and quarantine, our restaurants, organic and grassroots food and producers in the supply chain across the world are losing jobs and struggling to sell and move their produce. Slow food is working around the clock to support our members, many of whom have worked so hard to find ethical solutions to produce food for our planet. We stand by them and will do all we can to help.”
The Lovedesh #IRemember1.3bn Tee will be unveiled on 26 May 2020. Made from 100% organic cotton and by factory workers personally vetted and checked and paid living wages, the Lovedesh Tee range is also designed to bring more equitable solutions for the fashion sector. All sales of this item will stop on 24 April 2021.
The webinar created by Lovedesh CEO Yasmin Choudhury, today, 15 May at 2.30pm GMT and 7.30pm BDT, is part of a Lovedesh initiative called Lovedesh PITOP (Produce In Time Of Pandemic), a series of expert webinars to help find solutions during Covid-19.
The inaugural Lovedesh PITOP Zoom webinar on 15 May discussed the topic of “Equity In Food” and how food and tourism sectors could combine to provide solutions. Holland, chaired a business panel featuring Dr Harold Goodwin, a re- known global sustainable tourism expert and Lovedesh’s Yasmin Choudhury and Amber Choudhury -Kaye. The webinar shared a preview of some of the solutions one of which is “The Lovedesh Dawat” a slow food, fashion and tourism experience to promote Bangladesh as a luxury destination.
The Bangladesh panel, chaired by Choudhury explained the crisis facing their business community. It featured Ohidul (via audio call), a Rana Plaza survivor who
spoke of his dreams to work with Lovedesh. With voices of tourism stakeholders in Bangladesh coming from PATA Bangladeshi Chapter members Mr Qadir Syed of Adventure Escape Asia, Mr Masud Hossain of Bengal Tours. As well as Mr Masum Moniruzzaman of TOAB (Tour Operators Association Of Bangladesh) who presented statistics.
The #IRemember1.3bn campaign by Lovedesh will raise funds through sales of the Lovedesh Tee, to fund solutions and promote the work of Slow Food Organisation in Europe and across the world.
The Lovedesh series of webinars under the umbrella of BITOP (Business In Time Of Pandemic) has so far covered the global Fashion, Produce industries and soon will cover tourism. It is a peer-to peer network, designed to platform grassroot experts from Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America and other regions. To give voice to them so they can help share knowledge and ideas of how they too can help their peers in other foreign nations.
Notes To Editors
Lovedesh is a new not-for-profit ethical luxury British social enterprise. Founded by Yasmin Choudhury, a
British woman with heritage from Bangladesh. And run with the help of her teenage daughter Amber
Choudhury-Kaye. A series of ethical luxury experiences designed to protect the planet will be announced
on 26 May 2020 as part of Yasmin’s 50th birthday party celebrations.
Slow Food is a global, grassroots movement with thousands of members around the world that links the pleasure of food with a commitment to community and the environment. It was founded in 1989 in Italy.
Slow Food in the UK is the umbrella body formed by Slow Food England, Slow Food Scotland, Slow Food
Cymru and Slow Food Northern Ireland.
The Lovedesh PITOP “Equity In Food” live webinar will be uploaded to Lovedesh’s YouTube Channel on May 26, 2020
Media Contact
UK – Yasmin Choudhury Lovedesh / Shane Holland, Slow Food
+44 7786 727811
media@lovedesh.com / communications@slowfood.org.uk
https://www.slowfood.org.uk/
