On 20 May 2020, the European Commission adopted a Farm to Fork Strategy for a fair, healthy and environmentally friendly food system (F2F Strategy).
In line with the European Green Deal , it proposes to transform our food systems into global standards for competitive sustainability, the protection of human and planetary health, as well as the livelihoods of all actors in the food value chain.
The COVID-19 crisis has demonstrated how vulnerable the increasing biodiversity loss makes us and how crucial a well-functioning food system is for our society.
What’s in it for Food Banks?
You can read the specific section (2.5) on reducing food loss and waste (p. 14) of the Communication where the following points are mentioned:
- the social dimension of reducing food waste for the recovery and redistribution of surplus food
- the objective of halving per capita food waste at retail and consumer levels by 2030 (SDG Target 12.3)
- the intention to set a baseline and propose legally binding targets to reduce food waste across the EU
- the importance of date marking (‘use by’ and ‘best before’ dates)
- the EU Platform on Food Losses and Food Waste will help show the way forward for all actors.
How does the Strategy ensure action is being taken against food waste?
The Commission will seek to scale-up action across the EU, mobilising Member States, food businesses and civil society notably through the work of the EU Platform on Food Losses and Food Waste and encouraging implementation of its recommendations for action by all players.
Committed to reaching the UN Sustainable Development Goal target to halve per capita food waste at retail and consumer levels by 2030, the Commission will propose, by 2023, legally binding targets to reduce food waste across the EU. These will be defined against a baseline set following the first EU-wide monitoring of food waste levels, measured according to a common EU methodology. The Commission will consider further opportunities to integrate food loss and waste prevention as part of all relevant EU policies and take action to strengthen the evidence base for food waste prevention interventions.
The Strategy will be reviewed by mid-2023 to assess whether the action taken is sufficient to achieve the objectives or whether additional action is necessary.
Related documents on the European Platform on Food Losses and Waste
- Website – link here
- Recommendation for Actions in Food Waste Prevention – link here
- EU Food Donation Guidelines – link here available in multiple languages
- DG Sante Newsletter
– 1st Edition / April 2020 – link here (focus on FEBA – p. 6)
– 2nd Edition of the monthly newsletter – link here (focus on FEBA here)
