As households put €700 worth of food in the bin every year, reducing food waste has been described as a “common-sense way” of saving money and protecting the environment this National Stop Food Waste Day (Wednesday, March 1).
Comments made by the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Charlie McConalogue, highlight the important role individuals can play in reducing food waste.
Speaking on National Stop Food Waste Day 2023, Minister McConalogue said that tackling food waste is one of the most effective solutions to meeting global climate targets.
Bread, fruit and vegetables are the foods that are most likely to go to waste in Irish households, research by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), has shown.
Being more aware of what food people throw out the most is an important first step in reducing every household’s food waste, the minister said,
“Reducing our food waste means we respect our farm and fishing families, processors and those who work to provide us with that food,” he added.
While Ireland aims to reduce food waste by 50% by 2030, most recent EPA estimates indicate that approximately 770,316t of food waste was generated across the country in 2020.
Of this waste, 31% comes from households; 29% from the processing and manufacturing sector; 23% from restaurants and food service; 9% from primary production; and 8% from retail and distribution.
National Stop Food Waste Day
Starting from today, on National Stop Food Waste Day, people are encouraged to record their waste for one week.
This year, people are invited to take the Stop Food Waste Challenge to identify food items most likely to be thrown out, where savings can be made on their food bill, and to reduce that waste by:
- Buying less;
- Storing better;
- Eating; and
- Freezing.
The National Food Waste Prevention Roadmap 2023-2025 published last year sets out how Ireland will deliver on its commitment to halve current food waste levels.
While countries across the European Union committed to this target in 2015, the EU still generated 57 million tonnes of food waste in 2020, worth €130 billion.
As a result, in June 2023, the European Commission will propose legally binding reduction targets, which will be based on the above figures.