Halving food waste by 2025: UK industry players sign up to ambitious roadmap 

25 Sep 2018 --- Nearly 100 suppliers, manufacturers, retailers and restaurant chains have signed up a landmark food waste roadmap, pledging to halve food waste from farm to fork by 2025. Described as a groundbreaking, world-first initiative, the commitment includes efforts to drive down food waste and publish data in a bid to become much more transparent and tackle how much waste companies are producing.

Published today (September 25) by UK waste reduction organization WRAP and IGD, a research and training charity which sits at the heart of the food and grocery industry, the “Food Waste Reduction Roadmap” is an extremely significant step up in the fight on food waste because it’s targeting businesses to reduce waste at every stage of the supply chain by setting a series of objectives. 

Signing up to the roadmap is the most compelling step the UK food industry has taken on food waste after previously it has faced criticisms for not going far enough on its commitments – the idea of the roadmap is to change that. 

Nestlé UK and 86 other early adopters have signed up to the ambitious milestones laid out in the new roadmap which encompasses the entire supply chain from field to fork. 

It clearly shows the actions large businesses will take to address food waste both in their own operations and by working to support suppliers. It also sets out how businesses can engage with consumers to help reduce their food waste.

The industry-wide roadmap and toolkit will:
- Allow businesses to measure and report consistently and with confidence.
- Help food businesses take targeted action to reduce waste in their own operations, their supply chain and from consumers.
- Help the food sector deliver against Courtauld 2025 targets.
- Help the UK deliver its part in Sustainable Development Goal 12.3.

“Managing our food waste effectively can not only help reduce its environmental impact but help address some of the food inequality issues experienced in our communities. We are proud to commit to the Food Waste Reduction Roadmap, only by working together can we address this issue at the pace and scale required,” says Nestlé Head of Value Chain Sustainability, Andy Griffiths.

Publishing food waste data 
At the same time, the UK’s largest retailer Tesco has announced that 27 of its suppliers will publish food waste data for the first time. This includes Booker, the wholesale group Tesco snapped up for £4 billion (US$5.5 bn) last March to create a retail powerhouse in the UK food industry. 

Branded suppliers including Coca-Cola, Mars, General Mills and Unilever will also commit to the project within the next 12 months. In addition, 27 of Tesco’s own label suppliers will be publishing their data. 

FoodIngredientsFirst has reached out to these companies for further comment. 

Champions 12.3
Tesco’s Chief Executive Dave Lewis is calling on the global food industry to be transparent and publish their food waste data as well. He will be speaking today in New York as the Chairman of Champions 12.3. 

“Every year, a third of the world’s food goes to waste. That’s the equivalent of 1.3 billion tons of food being thrown away and we think that’s simply not right,” he will tell Champions 12.3, a coalition of executives from governments, businesses, international organizations, research institutions, and civil society.

“We hope every country, major city and company involved in the food supply chain publishes their own food waste data so that together we can take targeted action to reduce waste.”

“We believe that what gets measured gets managed. Ultimately, the only way to tackle food waste is to understand the challenge – to know where in the supply chain food is wasted.”

Tesco was the first UK retailer to publish the amount of food wasted in its operations in 2013 and is now 70 percent towards achieving its food waste goals. 

The Roadmap has the support of the UK’s largest food trade bodies, businesses across the supply chain and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), Welsh and Scottish Governments. Widespread adoption of Target, Measure, Act is vital to achieving national policy objectives and targets on food waste reduction, including Courtauld 2025 and the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 12.3.

According to Wrap, businesses are taking the lead to drive down the UK’s annual £20 billion (US$26bn) food waste bill, equivalent to more than £300 (US$394) per UK citizen with 90 organization beginning an “epic journey” with the groundbreaking roadmap. 

“Together, WRAP and IGD have mobilized industry leaders to create a bold sector-wide Roadmap, showing clearly what UK businesses must do,” says CEO, Marcus Gover.

“This Roadmap is hugely ambitious, and I’m delighted that the UK is the first country anywhere to set a nation-wide plan towards delivering its part in SDG12.3. There are many businesses working hard already, but many more need to focus on food waste.”

“If the food sector follows this Roadmap it will significantly accelerate work to achieving both Courtauld 2025 and SDG12.3 targets. And I urge other companies to adopt the principles laid out in the Roadmap and join the rest of the sector on this historic journey.”

By Gaynor Selby