A voluntary agreement between leading food sector businesses to reduce food waste across NZ’s food supply chain will be launched next month.
The Kai Commitment project is an initiative of the New Zealand Food Waste Champions 12.3 Trust.
It will help businesses to:
- set a target and actions to reduce food waste and measure their progress, supported by global best practice
- identify cost savings and new revenue streams from preventing or reusing food waste
- collaborate across the supply chain on shared food waste challenges
- showcase leadership and success, including through collective reporting
FGC member companies have been invited to be part of the project.
Reducing food waste will also reduce emissions that come from it. Globally, almost 30% of greenhouse gases come from the food system, and an estimated 40% (2.5 billion tonnes) of all food produced for human consumption is wasted each year.
Food waste reduction has been identified as one of the best solutions to reverse climate change.
NZ Food Waste Champions 12.3 told FGC members in a recent webinar that voluntary agreements have proven successful in reducing food waste all over the world, and New Zealand is ready for a more efficient, resilient and sustainable food system. It has been proven that reducing food waste is the third best action to slow climate change.
FGC members Goodman Fielder, Fonterra Brands, and Silver Fern Farms are among the founding signatories, which also includes Countdown.
The webinar was also told that according to case studies, reducing food waste has a proven return of $14 for every dollar invested in solutions.
After Kai Commitment is launched it will begin gathering data on food waste to showcase success and identify hotspots that need attention. It will work with individual businesses to identify where they are on their journey to reduce waste and help them set targets.
Companies can join Kai Commitment before the launch date.
Kai Commitment is supported by the Ministry for the Environment
For more information, go to the Kai Commitment website or the New Zealand Food Waste Champions 12.3 website.