Comparison of tax advantages provided to food banking in Turkey and selected countries

Access to health-sustaining food is a basic human need. Such access is facilitated or hindered in various ways around the world. In addition, food has been universalized at the legal level as a human right recognized by the United Nations (1948) under Article 25 of the Declaration of Human Rights. Various public policies implemented to ensure universal access to nutritious food include market-based distribution mechanisms, human rights approaches to food accessibility policy, and food deprivation. Food banks, which are growing strongly, are food distribution centers that make it easier for people to access food. Food banking can be defined as "voluntary community organizations that collect food and financial donations from the public and corporate sectors and distribute food aid locally, regardless of the principles they adhere to." Food banks and other similar organizations store donations from retailers, restaurants or farmers under appropriate conditions to supply food and deliver it to people in need. In today's conditions, food banks with a corporate structure serve as a bridge between those in need and those who want to help in extraordinary situations such as famine, disaster and disease. Tax laws and the definition and legal framework of food banks that fight against waste and poverty in developed and underdeveloped countries have been established. Food banking legislation, which was created specific to each country's own legal infrastructure, came to the fore with tax reforms and summit meetings were held in Turkey to ensure that the relevant regulations were on the agenda. Again, the incentives applied by governments for more food donations were realized through taxes. In this study, food banking practices and the legislation developed for this were compared with the information obtained from various organizations for the USA, which witnessed the birth and development of food banking, Canada, which represents the example of a social state, and Turkey, the geography we live in. Keywords: Food Banking, tax, food banking tax incentives, USA, Canada and Türkiye