Prato Cheio

What Prato Cheio does

Associação Prato Cheio is a Brazilian nonprofit organization (OSCIP — Civil Society Organization of Public Interest) founded in 2001 by university students who identified large volumes of food waste at the São Paulo Municipal Market. The organization operates the Rota Solidária (Solidarity Route) project, which collects fresh food that would otherwise be discarded from markets and commercial donors and redistributes it to 70+ charitable institutions serving 33,000+ people in social vulnerability, with 816+ tons distributed in 2025 and over 6 million kilograms rescued cumulatively across 25 years of operation. The association is headquartered in São Paulo with 1-10 employees and is led by President Walter Belik, Vice President Ricardo Levinzon, Director Leny Pripas, and General Manager Nuria Chaim.

The organization has built a dual-platform technology stack to support its mission. The Distance Learning Platform (Prato Cheio para Todos), launched in 2025, is a Moodle-based LMS integrated with Google Meet, delivering 20+ free certified courses on food handling, storage, nutrition, and waste reduction, developed with academic support from Centro Universitário Senac Santo Amaro. The Impact Platform (Plataforma de Impacto), launched in 2024, is built on Apache Superset and provides public dashboards tracking food donation metrics, donor panels, and beneficiary visualizations at the pratoméricos dashboard. Both platforms are sub-brands alongside the Urban Harvest (Colheita Urbana) and Solidarity Workshops (Oficinas Solidárias) programs.

The revenue model is multi-channel and donation-driven rather than commercial. Primary inflows are individual donations via PIX (Brazilian instant payment) and bank deposits to Banco Itaú, corporate donations eligible for up to 2% Income Tax deduction under Brazilian Law 9.790/99, automatic redirection of Nota Fiscal Paulista tax credits, and international donations facilitated through CAF AMERICA affiliation. A secondary stream comes from the sale of social gift products (gingerbread, honey buns, tribute cards) priced R$6.60-R$45.00, and a corporate partnership program offering workshops, lectures, and events with logo exposure and Prato Cheio Seal usage rights. The organization is geographically concentrated in São Paulo and Brazil, with an international partnership with Plato Lleno (Argentina) initiated in 2017 and minor alliances with FAAP Social and Mesa Brasil Sesc SP.

Name

Prato Cheio

Legal name

Associação Prato Cheio

Website

https://pratocheio.org.br

Company type

Private

Founded year

2001

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Associação Prato Cheio is a Brazilian OSCIP nonprofit founded in 2001 that rescues surplus food from São Paulo markets and distributes it to 70+ charitable institutions serving 33,000+ vulnerable people, supported by a Moodle-based learning platform and a Superset-based impact dashboard.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Food Rescue Services

NAICS

Community Food Services (62421), Community Food Services (624210), Emergency and Other Relief Services (624230)

akta.pro primary industry

Food Assistance & Nutrition Relief (Emergency Feeding) (BPAGAAAD)

akta.pro secondary industry

Resilient Livelihoods & Climate-Smart Food Security (BPADAJAH)

Keywords

• Food rescue services
• Food waste reduction
• Charitable food distribution
• Social assistance programs
• Food security initiatives

Headquarters

HQ city

São Paulo

HQ country

Brazil

HQ region

Latin America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Donations: Primary revenue stream through PIX transfers (CNPJ 04.490.998/0001-00), bank deposits to Banco Itaú (AG 0445, C/C 20291-4), and Nota Fiscal Paulista program donations. Corporate sponsorships provide additional donation support.
2. Corporate Partnerships: Business partnerships offering culinary workshops, speeches, projects, and events with counterparts including logo display, activity report association, Prato Cheio Seal usage rights, and donation receipts for up to 2% Income Tax deduction under Brazilian Law 9.790/99.
3. Social Products: Sale of social gift items including gingerbread products, honey buns, tribute cards, and practical kits. Minimum orders required for various products priced from R$6.60 to R$45.00.
4. International Donations via CAF AMERICA: Affiliation with CAF AMERICA enables international donations from global supporters.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

Associação Prato Cheio rescues fresh food destined for discard from markets and food businesses in São Paulo and distributes it safely to a network of charitable institutions serving people in social vulnerability. It supplements this core food rescue operation with a free Moodle-based distance learning platform providing certified courses on food handling and nutrition, and an Apache Superset-based impact dashboard for transparent reporting of donation outcomes.

Product overview

Associação Prato Cheio operates a multi-platform ecosystem focused on food waste reduction and food security. The core offering centers on the Urban Harvest (Colheita Urbana) program within the Rota Solidária Project, which rescues fresh food from commerce and distributes it to social institutions. This is supported by two technology platforms: the Distance Learning Platform (Prato Cheio para Todos) built on Moodle offering over 20 free online courses on food handling, nutrition, and integral food preparation; and the Impact Platform (Plataforma de Impacto) using Apache Superset to visualize donation metrics and track organizational impact. Additional offerings include PIX payment integration, Nota Fiscal Paulista donation system, and a corporate partnership program with workshops and events.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Rota Solidária: Urban Harvest project responsible for collecting fresh food that would be discarded and distributing it to social assistance institutions.
• Plataforma de Impacto
• Prato Cheio para Todos
• Oficinas Solidárias

Products and services

• Urban Harvest (Colheita Urbana) The core food rescue and donation program of Associação Prato Cheio, collecting fresh food that would otherwise be discarded from commerce and distributing it safely to a network of 70+ social assistance institutions serving people in social vulnerability. Operates within the Rota Solidária (Solidarity Route) Project and forms the foundation of the organization's three strategic pillars (Urban Harvest, Education and Systematization of Knowledge, and Innovation and Sustainable Development).
• Distance Learning Platform (Prato Cheio para Todos) Free online education platform offering 17+ courses on food handling, storage techniques, menu creation, integral food recipes, nutrition education, and food waste reduction. Built on Moodle LMS with Google Meet integration for live virtual classes, and developed with technical support from Centro Universitário Senac Santo Amaro. Provides certificates upon course completion, targeting individuals and professionals seeking food safety and nutrition training.
• Impact Platform (Plataforma de Impacto) Data visualization and impact tracking platform providing transparent visibility into food rescue and donation outcomes. Features a public dashboard ('Prato Cheio em Números') along with food donor and beneficiary institution panels for authorized users. Built on Apache Superset for analytics and visualization.
• Corporate Partnership Program Business partnership program offering corporate donors and sponsors culinary workshops, lectures, projects, and events with partnership benefits including logo display, activity report association, Prato Cheio Seal usage rights, and donation receipts providing up to 2% Income Tax deduction under Brazilian Law 9,790/99. Designed for companies pursuing ESG, CSR, food waste reduction, and tax optimization objectives.

Quantifiable outcome

• 6 million+ kg of food collected and donated over 25 years
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration3 records

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Plato Lleno (Argentina)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 17 November 2017International partnership with Argentine organization Plato Lleno for sharing methodology and joint actions. First meeting held in Buenos Aires in November 2017. Both organizations united by respect for food and fighting food waste.
• Centro Universitário Senac Santo AmarocoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTechnical support partner for course development on the distance learning platform. Professor Marselle Bevilacqua Amadio provided academic guidance for course content.
• Mesa Brasil Sesc SPcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRecognition and collaboration with Mesa Brasil Sesc SP, receiving tribute at Sesc Pinheiros event. Mesa Brasil is a food bank network supporting Prato Cheio's mission.
• FAAP SocialminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerEducational institution partnership with FAAP Social for collaborative initiatives and knowledge sharing.
• Governo do Estado de São Paulo (Nota Fiscal Paulista)coreGTM or Marketing PartnerState government program enabling citizens to donate tax invoice credits to Prato Cheio. Registered entity CNPJ 04.490.998/0001-00.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Mesa Brasil Sesc: Sesc's national food-bank network in Brazil, focused on rescuing and redistributing surplus food to vulnerable populations. Directly comparable to Prato Cheio's Rota Solidária model and operates as a formal partner/recognition body for Prato Cheio.
• Plato Lleno: Argentine food-rescue nonprofit that is Prato Cheio's formal international methodology-sharing partner. Operates an analogous model of collecting surplus food from markets and distributing to social institutions.
• Food Bank Brasil (Rede Brasileira de Bancos de Alimentos): Brazilian umbrella network aggregating food banks across multiple states. Directly comparable as a food-rescue and redistribution organization with similar beneficiary segments and corporate-donor model.

Broad incumbents

• Global FoodBanking Network: International umbrella organization supporting food banks globally. Comparable mission framework and the natural affiliation route for a food-rescue NGO seeking international scaling and donor access.
• Feeding America: Largest US hunger-relief organization and food-bank network. Comparable food-rescue/redistribution mission and corporate partnership model, operating at much greater scale and serving as the broad incumbent in the category.

Emerging players

• FoodForward SA: South African food-rescue organization redistributing surplus food to beneficiary organizations. Comparable methodology and emerging-market food-security positioning.
• OzHarvest: Australia's leading food-rescue charity, redistributing surplus food to charities and running complementary education programs. Comparable mission, beneficiary model, and adjacent education-platform strategy.
• Refood: Portugal-based food-rescue NGO combining volunteer-led food recovery with community integration programs. Comparable volunteer-dependent food-rescue model and dual mission of food rescue plus social impact.

Regional players

• Second Harvest (Canada): Canada's largest food-rescue organization. Comparable mission and impact-reporting platform approach; operates in a different geography.
• Banco Alimentar Contra a Fome: Portuguese food-bank network with a comparable surplus-food-rescue and redistribution model. Regional peer operating in a different geography with the same mission and corporate-donor structure.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/pratocheio
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCRECdfC6qv3v0iC7A-6AYwA
• Facebookfacebook.com/apratocheio
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/in/associacao-prato-cheio

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Prato Cheio