With millions of people across the world suffering from hunger and malnutrition, a priority for Copa & Cogeca and our members is to avoid food waste. The Platform aims to enable key stake holders to share best practices and to support collaborative actions all along the food chain from farmers to consumers to prevent and reduce food losses and waste.
Speaking in Brussels, Copa & Cogeca Secretary-General Pekka Pesonen said “We want to develop new outlets for produce that does not meet specific standards set by EU legislation or by the market. By-products from the EU agriculture sector can be used for example in innovative ways for animal feed, bio-based products, bio-energy or be incorporated into the soil to increase its organic matter content”.
“Many of our members already have innovative projects underway to curb food waste and to contribute to the Sustainable Development Goal 12.3. One project involves for instance the development of an on-line training tool to give representatives in the food chain practical advice on how to start reducing waste and how to create a recovery programme on the farm in favour of charities”, he added.
“Another project developed by our members involves reducing food waste by changing the standards and packaging of potatoes. Another example involves the creation of a whey protein drink for use in sport using whey which did not have a previous outlet. Also misshapen carrots which cannot be put directly on to the market are sold for processing , he said.
“We believe that this Platform will help to share such practices amongst key stakeholders and also to develop new ideas. The circular economy is a real opportunity to make the most of our innovative potential to find outlets for by-products and, at the same time, enable us to be more competitive and create jobs in rural areas. There should nevertheless be a clear distinction between what is “avoidable” and what is “non-avoidable” food waste like crops which have been lost as a result of bad weather conditions. Without compromising food safety, we believe that the Platform should also look at how legislation and administrative practices can be improved to enable by-products to be re-used”, he concluded.
