A Google offshoot has created two new programs that make it easy for suppliers, commercial kitchens, and producers to route unneeded food to food banks that actually need it.

Google’s New Project

Known as Project Delta, the machine learning programs take into account thousands of variables and different calculations, the things it would actually take a dedicated team of organizers to manage and ensure the food is going where it is needed most, where it’s most likely to get eaten, and other priorities.

Many commentators describe food waste as “a good problem to have,” as it inherently suggests that there is enough to go around. The problem is that it’s not always going to where there are hungry people.

Producers and sellers alike try to make as much as they think they can find buyers for, while the final stage owner of food – restaurants, supermarkets, or hotels, often have too many things to worry about and consider how best to send food further down the line.

The efficient distribution of food is a challenging job to take on all the way down the supply chain. Perhaps this is one of the reasons that 30-40% of the food in the U.S. is wasted.

Adele Peters covers the Google innovation and shares that there is no simple way for food suppliers to let food banks know what they have available, or for pantries or food banks to communicate what they need.

A Great Way to Bank

Emily Ma explains that they set out to create a smarter food system. One that knows in what state the food is, its location, and where best to direct it to. This way, it ensures that it ends up to the people who need it most and not in a landfill.

Finally, in a more impressive display of machine learning, special cameras are installed next to waste bins in Google-facility kitchens. They were able to collect twice as much information about food waste as the manual by-hand logs that were made by chefs, which took about 30-60 minutes to complete.

Food is one of the easiest ways to determine and differentiate between countries and nationalities. This difference is prominent when we look at the food eaten during different holidays. While the holiday being celebrated might be the same, the food people indulge in during this time can be really unique. In this article of ours, we are going to check out what different people eat around the world during the holidays!

Shuba, also commonly known as a “fur coat salad,” is one of the main salad dishes during New Year’s in Russia. The salad consists of different layers of ingredients, namely carrots, potatoes, herring fillets, and onions.

However, one key ingredient is beets, which gives the salad its unique and beautiful purple color. This salad is referred to as “fur coat salad” to give tribute to the way all Russians have to wear heavy fur clothing and coats to combat the harsh winter cold!

Ask anyone and they will tell you their favorite meal to have during Christmas is a good, hot stew. The Ethiopians thus bring forward the traditional Yebeg Wot during the night of Christmas. The delicious and mouth-watering stew consists of lamb that chefs and homely grandmas lovingly slow cook.

The lambs used for the stew are generally bought in advance from farmers so that they can be fattened up before Christmas. This buttery stew is made with their traditional Ethiopian berbere spice and later on served with Ethiopian flatbread Injera.

Originally introduced in Hong Kong, Bahn Chung soon gained recognition and preference in Vietnam mainly during national holidays such as “Tet.” This dish consists of square rice cakes which are made from glutinous Vietnamese rice.

Other ingredients in the dish include different types of meat, however, the most common and traditional meat used is pork. Mung beans are also included in the recipe to provide eaters with an earthy taste. The Banh Chung traditionally symbolizes the great and wide Earth.

Puerto-Ricans are all about the Christmas spirit, and they love making the most of this worldwide holiday by cooking and consuming Pasteles for the day. This very traditional Christmas dish is made with tons of pork stuffing and adobo, which are usually encased in a plantain “masa.”

The entire dish is then wrapped up in banana leaves. Although made specifically for Christmas, Puerto-Ricans enjoy munching on this traditional dish after the holiday as well, as they prefer freezing extra pasteles for future consumption in advance.

Peru is usually revered for producing one of the best cocoa beans for chocolate, so it is not exactly a surprise when you get to know that they tend to celebrate most of their annual holidays with what they produce best!

Peruvians love spending their holidays by sipping a hot, steaming cup of Spiced Hot Chocolate. The drink is made with heavy milk and lots of different traditional spices that enhance the richness and creaminess of the chocolate base.

Originally served by Eastern Orthodox Christians during the Christmas season in Ukraine, Kutia is a very traditional dish enjoyed by people of all ages. This grainy pudding-like dish generally consists of sweetened gravy that is usually part of an entire 12-course meal!

The pudding is made with different nuts and seeds as well as heaps of raisins. Kutia may seem only like a holiday dessert to many, but it is also very nutritional to eat due to the many seeds and nuts it consists of.

This traditional Fijian dish is mainly consumed throughout the day of Christmas as it is quite filling and of course, delicious. The Banana leaf-wrapped fish meal is cooked by following the original Fijian method of scorching coconut milk on a hot stone.

Fijians cook the fish by wrapping either smoothly cut portions of it or the entire fish itself on a large banana leaf. This meal is quite heavy and very nutritious.

Combining healthy vegetables with the right carbs and fats gained from meats, this Bulgarian traditional meal during Christmas is one of the yummiest meals you can consume throughout the day. Stuffed vegetables are cooked and eaten in Bulgaria during the Christmas season because of how hassle-free the meal is.

The dish is made by stuffing bell peppers to the brim with different types of meat, such as either pork or ground beef. The food is then boiled and later on topped off with a homemade sauce.

You know a dish is popular when it has its own national holiday dedicated to it. There are a few things that are synonymous with holidays in South Africa, and one of them has to be “Braai.”

It is the county’s equivalent of barbecue that brings people together. Braai in South Africa is much more than just cooking and eating meat off the grill, it is a celebration of gathering and sharing food with friends and family.

In Costa Rican households, Christmas without Chicken and Pork Tamales is just incomplete. For decades, Tico families have been making tamales to share the joy of celebrating with family and friends.

While the recipe of the tamale in Costa Rica varies between regions, the most authentic version of tamales comes wrapped in banana leaves with seasoned meat rolled inside. Served piping hot with fresh vegetables on top, tamales take the joy of the holiday a notch higher.

The Japanese tend to start the new year slurping a bowl of year-crossing noodles known as Toshikoshi Soba. The long buckwheat noodle symbolizes long life, while the easily cut texture symbolizes letting go of the previous year’s hardships.

Keeping all the symbolism aside, your year is bound to start off deliciously if you have a bowl full of Toshikoshi Soba bathed in hot dashi broth along with an egg and tempura on New Year’s Eve.

While the appearance of Haggis doesn’t necessarily scream out elegance, the unique taste certainly makes up for it. Haggis is Scotland’s national dish. It is a savory pudding consisting of minced meat, oatmeal, and spices cooked inside a sheep’s stomach.

While it may not win the title of the most “good looking” dish in our list, a scorching hot meal of meaty and crumbly haggis with a rustic peppery kick makes a scrumptious meal.

Ramazan Pide, also known as Ramadan pita is a classic dish in Turkish culture. It is a soft leavened bread with a weave-like crust, traditionally served for the Iftar during the holy month of Ramadan.

Out of hundreds of classic dishes associated with Ramadan, when it comes to breaking the fast, no other Turkish food is as iconic as a loaf of Pide. Bakeries all over the country sell piping hot Pide, starting just an hour before the time to break the fast in the evening.

The French always seem to be a level above the rest of the world when it comes to cooking up delicious and unique desserts. The Bûche de Noël is such a dessert that is usually made to celebrate the night of Christmas.

This amazing dessert consists of a sponge cake roll which is generally covered or topped off with either coffee butter or chocolate cream. The dessert is eaten as a tribute to their ancient Yule tradition.

When we hear “rice cakes” the first name that pops into our minds is Korea. Tteokguk is a savory soup cooked with disc-shaped rice cakes and meat broth seasoned with pepper and herbs.

It is a tradition in Korea to eat a warm bowl of Tteokguk on the morning of the first day of the Lunar calendar, hoping for a fresh start to the new year. When the rice cakes are spot on and meat broth is properly spiced up, Tteokguk tastes absolutely delectable.

Claimed to be a quintessential treat in Canada, Butter tarts are usually consumed during Christmas. This delicious and delectable treat is made with lots of brown sugar, syrup, eggs, and of course, butter.

The item is really sweet, so those with a sweet-tooth usually go for this Christmas treat. The tart is very firm in the way it is cooked, so you can simply pop it in your mouth and enjoy the rich flavors packed inside.

What was commonly known as “peasant” food in the earlier years of war is now known as a popular Hanukkah dish in modern Israel, originally introduced by Northeastern Europeans. This dish is made out of potatoes and is given a pancake shape to make it easy and fast to consume during busy times.

The main ingredients used to cook up this yummy pancake are potatoes, eggs, and different types of cheese. There are tons of variations to this dish now, which differs from region to region.

Sweden may not have the most well-known foods, but there’s more to Swedish cuisine than meets the eye. Along with other holiday favorites, Swedish people love devouring Risgrynsgröt, which translates into “rice grain porridge.”

Dusted with cinnamon and served with almonds on top, Risgrynsgröt tastes simply divine. We all know for a fact that nothing can be more comforting than having a warm bowl of rice pudding on a chilly Christmas Eve, and this dish is the perfect way to spend a night in the Scandinavian winter wonderland.

Kushari is the national dish of Egypt that is mainly found on the street sides of the country. Although there have been debates going around about its origin, legend has it that this dish was first originated in the 14th century upon the arrival of Ibn Battuta, and slowly made its way to becoming an Egyptian staple.

Made with yellow lentils, rice, and veggies, this healthy yet filling dish doesn’t take up a lot of time to make.

You cannot expect to celebrate Christmas in England without consuming traditional mince pies! This yummy and meaty dish is an ideal meal for every Brit, mainly because of its unique taste and the fullness it provides afterward.

A traditional mince pie is made with spiced and sweetened meat, however, with time the recipe has undergone some changes. Now, you can expect a minced pie to consist of sugar, spices, lots of dried fruits, and maybe some drinks.

Doro Wat, a spicy chicken stew, simmered in spices for hours is the national delicacy of Ethiopia. It’s a dish that is not just true to its roots but also has a magnificent depth of flavor from the spices that are just too tempting to resist.

To add a sweet kick to it, Doro Wat is served with a heaping amount of caramelized onions on top. Even though it takes a great deal of effort to cook Doro Wat, the flavor is definitely worth all the hard work.

A holiday in Iraq is incomplete without the feasting bites of hand-rolled vine-leaf wrapped joy. Although it hails from Greece and is common in many regions of the world, Dolmas are strongly associated with Middle Eastern cuisine.

As a nod to the Middle Eastern culinary culture, Dolmas are made with a combination of savory and aromatic spices. To take the flavor to a whole new level, Dolmas are served with a drizzle of lime juice and olive oil on top.

There’s nothing more satisfying than gorging on a seafood platter and French people are well aware of that. Out of all the seafood available in the market, they prefer shellfish the most and love to serve it as an entrée during the holidays.

The shells are filled with flesh that is succulent enough to melt in the mouth. When paired with creamy sauces and drinks, shellfish tastes nothing short of magical.

When it comes to South Asia, a holiday isn’t considered a holiday without Biryani. Packed with meaty goodness and wholesome flavor, biryani is without a doubt the king of Indian cuisine.

Be it festivals or weddings, this multi-layered rice dish filled with tender meat, paired with chutney or raita is the star of the holidays. You can have a big plate of Biryani, only to end up craving for more.

Hangikjöt has been a traditional dish enjoyed in Iceland for decades after decades now. This meal is usually consumed with large gatherings at Christmas, but most Icelanders prefer eating this all year round anyway. The dish is made with either mutton, horse meat, or lamb which is then smoked for a long time.

The entire meal is served to eat with lots of béchamel sauce and green peas to balance out the richness. Icelanders also prefer consuming the meat with “Flatkaka,” which is a type of bread made natively.

Most of us not living in the States have come to learn about this great and mysterious drink through movies during Christmas. Turns out, Eggnog is that big of a hype in reality as well! The yummy drink consists of cream, whipped egg whites, egg yolks, and of course, lots of sugar.

The egg whites are responsible for giving the eggnog its frothy appearance. However, this drink tends to change with how people prefer drinking it, as adults usually add some beverage for festivity.

Made with love during the Easter holiday, Janssons Frestelse is also commonly known as “Jansson’s Temptation” in the western part of the world. This heavy and mouth-watering traditional Swedish dish is made with heaps of fresh potatoes, bread crumbs, and onions including lots of sprats and cream.

Pickled sprats are mainly used to cook this casserole dish as it gives the dish a tangy flavor. The meal is really heavy to eat, however, Swedish people tend to have it throughout the holiday season without getting tired at all!

A very traditional Christmas holiday in Germany usually consists of a heavy goose meal, combined with some yummy potato dumplings and loads of shredded red cabbage on the side. This three-course meal in one is one of the best and most common meals consumed by Christians in Germany during the annual holiday.

The goose cooked for the meal is mainly stuffed with different aromatics and nuts, including chestnuts and even apples. The red cabbage, on the other hand, is infused with mouth-watering spices with some drinks.

Grilled food holds a special place in the heart of Aussie people. While Grilled Prawn may not be an exclusively Australian cuisine, they do have their own signature version of it known as “shrimp on the barbie.”

For the best result, Australians tend to marinate the prawns in a decent amount of chili, ginger, and garlic and grill till it’s perfectly cooked. Accompanied by garlic aioli and squeezed lime juice, Grilled Prawns are hands down the best seafood you can have during a hot summer Christmas.

Finnish cuisine is fairly simple and based on all fresh and natural ingredients. Joulupöytä, translated into “Yule table,” is an assortment of traditional Finnish foods served at Christmas. The feast involves a range of different dishes that are most common for the season.

The main dish is always a large joint of baked ham paired with bread and condiments. Joulupöytä also includes Gravlax fish, casseroles, and lastly, mulled drinks to wash all the food down.

Although the dish sounds wicked, the dish is something that the people of Singapore look forward to each year. This Asian style curry with a major spicy kick is made with leftover veggies and meats and simmered on low heat until it reaches a stew-like consistency.

If you are a sucker for spicy foods, trying this curry at least once is a must for you. Make sure to have it with a freshly cut lime to balance out the spiciness. The flavor of this curry will definitely be memorable.

The Feast of Seven Fishes is quite a fitting dish to have during Christmas Eve in Italy. The dish is actually a seven-course one, which consists of different fish items in the forms of either pasta, entrees, soups, or appetizers.

The entire meal during Christmas Eve in Italy will consist of only seafood. The Feast of Seven Fishes is a Catholic tradition, so while most youngsters do not follow this meal ritual, some orthodox families still stay true to their ancient ways.

Melomakarono is an egg-shaped cookie made from flour and honey. It is a traditional Greek dessert prepared during the Christmas season.

The specialty of a Melomakarono cookie is that it’s filled with diced almond and soaked in caramel or honey syrup right after baking, infusing it with the delicious nutty flavor. Decorated with dark chocolate and ground almond, Melomakarono cookies taste like an absolute delight.

Iceland is world-famous for its dramatic natural beauty, but most people aren’t familiar with the country’s cuisines. From thrashing whales to free-roaming reindeers, Icelandic people eat it all. Cooked with an ample amount of butter and garlic, wild reindeer steak is an Icelandic staple.

Even though many people tend to be wary about the whole idea of cooking reindeer steak, according to locals it’s delicious enough to win people over. After all, expanding your tastebuds is the best way to experience the world.

A staple in the Philippines during Christmas Eve, Bibingka is a type of rice cake that is usually made by adding glutinous rice to some coconut milk and sugar. Some people prefer adding a dollop of margarine as well, as they claim it enhances the taste and richness of the rice cakes.

Although mainly consumed on Christmas, the dish is sold and purchased throughout the entire holiday season in the Philippines. This delicious rice cake dish usually goes along with another traditional item known as “Puto Bumbong.”

If you mistake Babka to be a mini version of panettone, you’re not completely wrong- as it resembles panettone in terms of shape. A traditional Babka recipe includes rum-soaked raisins, yeast risings, and a staggering amount of egg yolks.

Despite being made with yeast, it doesn’t require any kneading and is thus, super easy to make. Laced with chocolate syrup and drizzled with rum syrup, Babka is well-loved in every Polish household, especially during holidays.

While it does take up a lot of effort and requires some very tricky steps to make this dish, both Australians and New Zealanders make Pavlova every year for holidays.

Packed with sweetness this dessert has a delicate yet chewy texture that is crunchy on the outside and tender on the inside. To add a fresh hint to the dish and help cut through the extra zing of sweetness, it is topped with fresh fruits.

Another delectable German dish for Christmas is the Stollen cake. This cake is made with yeast-leavened bread and contains lots of dried fruits, candied currants, and oranges. Its unique taste comes from the addition of cardamom spice.

Many people prefer adding other sorts of spices and lemon zest to the recipe as well to enhance the overall flavor of the cake. Stollen cake can also be consumed after the holiday season as it can be stored away in a cold place for a substantial time.

Another great and tasty Fijian meal is pork cooked in “lovo.” This meal is eaten during various local and national Fijian holidays, so it is quite a very personal occasion to celebrate. Pork is wrapped with foil paper and placed on really hot coals so that the flavors stay trapped inside while the food slowly cooks.

Taro leaves are also used to make the “Palasumi” side dish that goes with the main item. The Palasumi is made with taro leaves cooked with onions, salt, beef, and coconut cream.

While some iteration of “Fufu” exists in many countries around the world, it’s a staple in Ghanaian cuisine. Fufu is a ground ball of fermented cassava that is eaten dipped in meat or veggie stews.

Fufu often acts as a spoon, as the round shape of it helps to scoop up the stews from the bowl. Made with starchy carbohydrates this may not be the healthiest food on our list, but Ghanaian people cannot seem to get enough of Fufu, especially during holidays.

St. Lucia’s Day, aka the Fesitval of Light, is celebrated in Sweden and other Scandinavian countries a couple of weeks before Christmas on December 13th. Young girls across the country dress up in white dresses with a red sash, with some selected to be “Lucia” who wear a crown of lit candles.

The eldest girl in each home delivers coffee and S-shaped saffron buns named Lussekattert to her parents for breakfast. These buns are made with saffron-infused dough and raisins in the “eyes” of the rolls – delicious!

The Jewish holiday of Hanukkah revolves around the story of a miracle involving the Temple oil after the Temple was destroyed, which led to a tradition of eating deep-fried pastries. This custom goes back thousands of years, and when you taste a Sufganiyah you can understand why.

Literally called “spongy dough,” these round doughnuts are deep-fried in oil and contain various types of fillings and toppings, with the most traditional being a strawberry jam filling and powdered sugar.

Lutefisk is dried or salted whitefish that gets treated with lye. We know what you must be thinking – isn’t lye a corrosive chemical found in soap? So while this may sound strange, the lye breaks down proteins in the fish, giving it a somewhat gelatinous texture.

Not to worry though, the lye gets soaked out and then the fish gets cooked with salt, so that its safe to consume. This dish is traditionally eaten as a winter delicacy in Scandinavian countries like Norway and Sweden.

This traditional Chinese dessert is usually served during the Winter Solstice Festival or the Lantern Festival, though it is also prepared at weddings or special occasions such as a family reunion. Tangyuan are dumplings of glutinous rice that have some sort of filling.

The filling traditionally consists of sweetened black sesame paste or red bean paste, and the rice balls are boiled and then served with the water that is sometimes also sweetened or infused with ginger.

Venezuelans celebrate Christmas with a traditional Hallaca, and preparing the dish is very much a part of it. Since hallacas aren’t the simplest to make, multiple family members take part in its preparation and they’ll make a batch large enough to last for the entire holiday season.

Hallacas are made with corn dough that’s snugly wrapped in a plantain leaf. The filling is usually a mixture of chicken, pork and beans, as well as raisins and olives. The leaf is then tied tightly with a string and cooked in boiling water.

Krusciki, or “angel wings,” are deep-fried doughnuts covered in powdered sugar. They are traditionally served by Polish families during Christmas, and get their name from their unique shape.

The trick is to get the dough both crunchy and pillowy, so once the dough is tossed into the boiling oil if puffs up and gets golden brown. This dessert is also made before Lent so that the family you can use up fat and other ingredients that are forbidden during this time.

This is a traditional Icelandic dish known as “leafbread” or “snowflake bread” that’s made during Christmas. Laufabrauð is a sugary bread or cookie which is made extremely thin, as Icelanders couldn’t afford much wheat flour due to its high price.

Its name comes from the geometric patterns that are cut into the dough, which is then deep-fried. Who wouldn’t like to sample this delicacy in front of a roaring fire on a cold Icelandic Christmas Eve?

Lechon translates literally to “piglet” from Spanish, and is prepared in some iteration in many Spanish-speaking countries. In the Philippines, which was a Spanish colony for centuries, lechon refers to a traditional dinner feast of an entire roast suckling pig, down to the apple in its mouth.

During Christmas, the lechon is slow-roasted over a charcoal pit, a process that requires a lot if work and knowledge so that no part of the pig gets undercooked or dried out.

Colombians can’t get enough of these sweet fried pastries, which are traditionally served at Christmas. Hojuela means “flake” in Spanish, and make up the Spanish equivalent of the saying “icing on the cake,” or “miel sobre hojuelas” which translates to “honey on flakes.”

The strips of dough are first flavored with orange juice, and then are deep-friend until they’re nice and crispy on the outside. Once they’re taken out of the oil they are sprinkled with powdered sugar and served. Yum!

It may sound strange, but the Japanese have a quirky tradition of eating at Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) at Christmas. It’s estimated that 3.6 million Japanese families dine at the fast-food restaurant for their Christmas dinner every year.

This tradition goes back to 1974 when the first KFC manager in Japan, Takeshi Okawara, went nation-wide with the “Kentucky for Christmas” campaign that became an instant hit. Since then, many Japanese families chow down on a delicious bucket of chicken, which is ordered several months in advance due to the high demand.

Fig pudding, also known as “figgy pudding” is a yummy dessert-like dish eaten as a fasting meal for Christmas in England. This tasty item makes use of dried fruits for the preparation, combined with creamy layers of nuts, fruits, and honey.

The dish also consists of some savory flavors which come from the sweetened pork meat fillings. Sometimes, drinks are also infused into the pudding to enhance the flavor. The weird thing about Figgy pudding is that it doesn’t actually consist of any figs or plums at all!

To quote Joey from Friends, “Thanksgiving with no turkey is like Friday with no two pizzas.” Boy, is he right! Thanksgiving dinner is the largest eating holiday in both the US and Canada, and the whole meal is centered on a huge roasted turkey.

Served with a range of side dishes including stuffing, mashed potatoes, and cranberry sauce, roasted turkey has evolved to be the iconic star of the Thanksgiving dinner.

With Thanksgiving knocking at the door, another French holiday delicacy made it to our list. This is specially served at Thanksgiving dinners. Translated as “a Normand hole”, Le trou Normand is a Calvados-soaked apple drink, usually served between a large course of banquet meals.

It comes in really handy to wash all the rich foods down. Le trou Normand also aids in digestion to help make room in the tummy for the remaining courses.

An Argentine holiday meal is all about being inventive and rich enough to represent the heritage. While the idea of Vitel Toné, a classic veal steak dish, was first brought to the table by Italians, it didn’t take much time to end up as an Argentine delicacy.

While nicely cooked veal steak tastes good on its own, it’s a tradition in Argentina to slather the steaks with mayo and tuna sauce, adding flavor, tenderness, and richness to the meat.

Kransekake which translates to “wreath cake” in English is a showstopping cake made for special occasions in Denmark and Norway. Although the taste of Kransekake is identical to cookies, it is the rolled-up design that stands out for this cake.

Made with a whopping 18 rings laid on top of each other, a Kransekake can easily feed 15 people. To take the taste to the next level, Danish people usually drizzle the cake with melted chocolate and dust powdered sugar all over it. Definitely the crowning glory of any holiday meal!