Andrew Mullins, Origin Green, Bord Bia – Irish Food Board
The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations estimates currently that one-third of all food produced globally ends up thrown away or wasted. The issue of food waste affects all parts of society – producers, growers, retailers, consumers, and those who are food insecure.
In order to tackle this issue, the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment, Denis Naughten, has launched an action group specifically tasked with examining solutions to food wastage from a retail point of view. The aim of this group is to assess how stakeholders from across the entire Irish food and drink industry can come together and work towards Ireland’s commitment under UN Sustainable Development Goal 12.3:
By 2030, halve per capita global food waste at the retail and consumer levels and reduce food losses along production and supply chains, including post-harvest losses.
In order to drive efficiency, Bord Bia through its Origin Green programme has formally partnered with FoodCloud, a social enterprise that connects food businesses that have large volumes of surplus food and distributes the food to local charities, to minimise food waste. To sign up, visit https://food.cloud/ .
To sign the Food Waste Charter and make a commitment to tackling this issue in your own business, visit foodwasteforum.ie.
For further information on preventing food waste, visit the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) website.
