JEDDAH: Ita’am, the Saudi food bank charity, recently held a program to teach people how to prepare food.

Amer bin Abdul Rahman Al-Barjas, the executive director of the program, said the plan is to educate over 1,200 students about the importance of saving food to help the needy. They would serve as ambassadors for the charity in their homes and at school, he said.

Abdul Majeed bin Isa, director of business development at Ita’am and supervisor of the program at schools, said they developed software to provide an interactive learning experience.

There are reportedly millions of riyals wasted every year because a massive amount of food is thrown away.

The wastage of food across Saudi Arabia has sparked off concerns from a cross section of society. Shoura Council member Ahmed Al-Mufreh recently submitted a proposal to impose different fines on individuals, eateries, restaurants and event organizers found wasting food.

According to latest reports, the food wasted in Makkah could feed 17 percent of hungry children in 18 developing countries.

Legal experts have called for a tough action against those who waste food and urged the Bureau of Investigation and Public Prosecution (BIPP) to issue arrest warrants and take legal action against people who boast about their extravagance on social media.