The 12th meeting of the EU Platform on Food Losses and Food Waste, which was the 1st in its new mandate (2022-2026), was held virtually on 17 February 2022. Members discussed how the Platform and its sub-groups will operate in the next 5 years as well as the priority areas of work for the expert group. The meeting kicked-off with an opening video statement by EU Commissioner for Health and Food Safety, Stella Kyriakides (read here the full text).
The Commission gave an update on the implementation of the Farm to Fork Strategy and discussed with members the role of food loss and waste prevention and contribution of the Platform to the establishment of sustainable food systems. Members were also informed about progress made on EU-level actions to reduce food loss and waste.
The Platform adopted its Rules of procedure and exchanged on the priority areas of work, tasks and objectives of the 5 sub-groups proposed for the new Platform: Food donation, Food loss and waste monitoring, Consumer food waste prevention, Date marking and food waste prevention, and Action & Implementation.
The European Food Banks Federation was represented by Angela Frigo, Secretary General: “As European Food Banks Federation we are grateful for all the achievements and outcomes of the EU Platform on Food Losses and Food Waste during its first mandate, and the European Commission can count on our support in this new mandate bringing the experience and expertise of our 29 European members.
Especially as regards food donation, a lot of initiatives have taken place – EU guidelines on food donation, key recommendations for action in food waste prevention, pilot project on food redistribution, amendments to Regulations (EU) No 852/2004 and 853/2004, etc. We have seen an increase of awareness but also an increase of donated food both in quantity and quality with a positive impact on the sustainability of the food system, on our planet but also on our community. We can build on what we have done, assess the situation, and make recommendations but also leveraging all these initiatives at national level in the different EU Member States.”
