Buy Food with Plastic in Ghana – A Big Step
Our co-CEOs Khalil Radi and Anna Gracia Herbst traveled together with Elena Hauptmann (co-founder and advisor for Ghana), Frank Sarria (Country Manager from Nicaragua), Vera Noll (Recycling Support Switzerland) and Dominik Marti (videographer) to Ghana to deepen the projects together with the local team, strengthen structures, and develop new partnerships.
A land full of energy, color, and drive
For our global team, the trip to Ghana was an important milestone. While Buy Food with Plastic has been active in Ghana for 5 years, this was the first personal visit by our management team – Khalil Radi and Anna Gracia Herbst – on site.
The project in Ghana was originally set up by Elena Hauptmann and Charlotte Claveau, our project facilitators from Switzerland, together with the local team. The visit by the global team now served to deepen the existing structures, strengthen the exchange with the communities, and jointly plan future growth steps
Right from the moment we arrived, it was palpable: Ghana has a special energy. The people are lively, energetic, and stylish – you can feel the drive to make a difference. The lush green of nature, the light, the music, the patterns – everything seems to be in motion. You feel a rhythm that is contagious.
At the same time, the gap left by the lack of infrastructure is visible. Many schools are underfunded – children bring their own chairs, and teachers teach computer science by drawing computers on the blackboard. In the rural areas around Elmina, where Buy Food with Plastic is active, work in the fields shapes the lives of many families. Children take on responsibility early, helping with household chores or collecting plastic.
Despite everything, you can feel the joy of learning, curiosity, and the will to shape your own future everywhere.
The strength of the women was also particularly impressive. They literally carry the world on their heads – water, wood, vegetables, sometimes entire trays full of food – and their children on their backs. These women embody dignity, strength, and self-assurance in the midst of a demanding everyday life.
Plastic as an opportunity – not as waste
In Ghana, waste management infrastructure is almost non-existent. Outside the capital, Accra, plastic usually ends up in nature or is burned. Our local team has built up a functioning collection structure in recent years, which is now active in a region with over 400,000 people.
A central component of this structure is the containers that have been installed in strategically important locations – such as at schools, bus stations, or tourist spots. This way, plastic is collected where people pass by every day.
This system is complemented by our monthly Plastic for Meals-Events, where people bring plastic and receive a warm meal in return. These events raise awareness, promote community, and show in a simple, concrete way that plastic has value.
Furthermore, our Plastic for Income-Truck is regularly on the road throughout the region and buys plastic directly from the population. This project is currently by far our most effective initiative for collecting plastic – the truck also reaches remote villages, allowing us to continuously collect large quantities of material.
Awareness of recycling and value creation is growing noticeably as a result: More and more people are consciously bringing their plastic to our collection points or waiting for the truck to exchange it.
Our current workshop, where the plastic is sorted and prepared for recycling, is now reaching its capacity limits. During the trip, we visited various plots of land together with the local team to plan a larger facility and take the project to the next level.
Collaboration and exchange across borders
A central focus of the trip was also genuine collaboration. For the first time, team members from Ghana, India, and Nicaragua sat together at one table. People who had worked together for years but had never met in person.
In joint workshops, we laughed, discussed, questioned, and rethought. We spoke openly about operational challenges, communication processes, quality standards, and what is important to us as an organization. These days showed how much power is generated when knowledge is shared.
We also met the Elderlies, Chiefs and Queen Mothers – the local authorities in the communities where we are active. Their approval and trust are crucial for every project we implement on the ground. The conversations were warm, respectful, and full of mutual appreciation. It was clear that Buy Food with Plastic is not perceived as an external initiative, but as part of the community.
Key Takeaways
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Strengthened global connection: For the first time, all Country Managers and the local team on the ground met – a milestone in international cooperation.
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Expansion planned: Due to the great success of Plastic for Income, a larger facility in Ghana will be required.
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Local ownership: Working with Chiefs and Queen Mothers strengthens the sustainability of the projects.
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Focus on children: Education and nutrition remain central themes of our work in Ghana.
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Team spirit and inspiration: The exchange between countries and cultures has taken the organization to a new level.
1 comment
Comments (1):
Einfach fantastisch was ihr erreicht – ich bin beeindruckt. Auch wenn ich nur im Hintergrund “mithelfe” bin ich im Herzen voll bei euch.
Ich freue mich über eure Infos, die ihr mit uns teilt! Weiter so – ihr macht soooo sinnvolle Arbeit!
Liebe Grüsse
Andrea