Lauded social entrepreneurRonni Kahn has been awarded an honorary doctorate by Griffith University.

As the founder of food-rescue charity OzHarvest, the South Africa-born Kahn was recognised this month by Griffith Business School for her considerable work and leadership in the realms of entrepreneurship, sustainability, innovation and social impact, which have all been key tenets of her decorated career over the past two decades.

Kahn founded OzHarvest in 2004 following a stint in hospitality as an events manager, during which she became aware of the sheer amount of still-edible excess food being thrown out by businesses.

In response, she set out to collect the surplus to deliver meals to people in need. What started with one van driving around Sydney – delivering 4000 meals in its first month – has since grown to also encompass services in Adelaide, Brisbane, Cairns, Canberra, Gold Coast, Melbourne, Newcastle and Perth.

Built on four pillars driving the company – Rescue, Educate, Engage and Innovate – OzHarvest now rescues more than 100 tonnes of food a week, with more than 3000 food donors contributing to their cause, from supermarkets and wholesalers to cafes, restaurants and airports.

In addition to the more than 74 million meals served over the past 13 years, Kahn and her company have now opened the country’s first rescued-food supermarket, OzHarvest Market, in Kensington, Sydney.