EU Platform on Food Losses & Food Waste:

Today, Commissioner Stella Kyriakides, in charge of Health and Food Safety, will address the members of the EU Platform on Food Losses and Food Waste at its 11th meeting, which will take place in a hybrid format. This is the last meeting of the current Platform before its re-establishment with a new membership, starting 2022.

The meeting will provide the opportunity to take stock of what has been achieved in food loss and waste prevention at EU level in the Platform’s five years of mandate (2016-2021) as well as on-going and planned work for the new Platform. Ahead of the meeting, Commissioner Kyriakides said: “The establishment of the Platform has helped the EU to push forward its food loss and waste agenda, increasing the momentum for change and engagement of all actors to find concrete solutions to address this issue. As part of the Farm to Fork Strategy, we will further step up action to fight against food loss and waste following an integrated food systems approach. We will make legislative proposals to set EU-level targets for food waste reduction and revise date marking rules as well as initiate a new project to tackle consumer food waste. We count on the Platform’s continued support to accelerate the EU’s progress towards the global target of halving food waste by 2030.”

During the meeting, the Commission will update members on the feedback received through the consultation launched via the Have Your Say portal on the setting of legally binding targets to reduce food waste in the EU, a flagship initiative of the Farm to Fork Strategy. The Platform will also discuss on-going and future projects, such as the European Consumer Food Waste Forum, a pilot project funded by the European Parliament. This multi-disciplinary forum will bring together researchers and practitioners to work together to find solutions and develop tools to help reduce consumer food waste. Platform members will also discuss the EU Code of Conduct on Responsible Food Business and Marketing Practices and its related food loss and waste commitments as well as global developments following the UN Food Systems Summit and the launch of the Food is Never Waste coalition.

The meeting will be web streamed for all of those interested in following the event.