This story begins with a student (Katharina) and her craving for cake. Whilst at university, she couldn’t find any cakes that matched the ones her Oma (grandma) would bake for her. She also noticed the lack of places where Omas and Opas can meet and connect with new people.

You will find food banks in most bigger cities across Europe. The concept is a familiar one: ‘surplus’ or donated food is collected and redistributed to those in need. A simple idea - often a logistical nightmare to execute. We thought it was about time for us to go behind the scenes of such a non-profit, to understand the simple, but absolutely essential work of these organisations.

'Recuperare' is Italian for 'to save'. And, it is the name of the young and motivated group with whom we've spent the past month. Because this is what they do, every day at markets all across Milan.

In the summer of 2015, Chef Massimo Bottura opened the first ‘Refettorio’ in Milan as a pop-up. It quickly gained support, so Food for Soul was born and more ‘Refettorios’ were opened: first Rio, then London, most recently Paris. In parallel, the organisation started weekly ‘Social Tables’ in Bologna, Modena and Napoli.

‘Pane Quotidiano’ has been around for a while... 120 years to be exact. Every Monday to Saturday, the organisation redistributes food to over 2000 people in Milan. Produce that has been donated or items that are about to expire - from bread to milk, panetone to yogurt.

As a young teen, Bistra would save her pocket money for weeks before spending it on meals at the most exotic foreign restaurants that she could find in Sofia. She has carried on this love for food and foreign cultures through the activities of MKC: regular culinary events are run by immigrants and refugees, for Bulgarian participants in an effort to counteract stereotypes that prevail amongst locals.

The one thing you will find in basically every culture no matter where you are in the world? Bread. The one thing everybody loves?! Warm bread! The one thing everyone has the ability to make (perhaps after a little guidance)?? BREAD!!!

Doing good by eating chocolate?! Stanimira's social chocolaterie makes it possible.

Christmas is approaching and one social enterprise in Bulgaria is giving all the more reason to indulge this chocolate-season. The Stanimira Chocolate House trains and employs people who may find it difficult to find other employment due to intellectual or physical disabilities. All employees are given the chance to learn and work in the sweet environment of this one-of-a-kind chocolaterie.

We're talking about unshapely veg again - waahooo! Who's excited?!

This week we’re taking you to Prague to meet Anna Strejcová of Zachraň jídlo - the NGO behind Jsem pripraven (“I am Ready”) - an awareness campaign that triggered multiple supermarkets to start selling wonky veg in the Czech Republic. How did they do this? Through ART. And by demonstrating that the Czech people are ready to buy produce in all its weird and beautiful shapes and sizes.

What do Silvia, Jana and Ban Ki-Moon have in common? All three ate and loved the falafel served at ‘Habibi & Hawara’ - an Austrian Oriental restaurant in the centre of Vienna. Opening its doors in 2016, this social enterprise was born as a response to the wave of refugees arriving in Austria in the summer of 2015.