Food waste is an increasing concern in Europe, high on the political agenda. In the EU, 33 million people cannot afford a quality meal every second day. Food assistance is essential for many people across the EU and yet 20% of the food produced is wasted which comes at an estimated cost of €143bn. Through the European Green Deal and Farm to Fork Strategy, the Commission has committed to halving per capita food waste at retail and consumer level by 2030 with legally binding targets.
Secretary general of European Foodbanks Federation (FEBA) Angela Frigo (left) put it plainly: “So in our modern society where there is abundance and scarcity, entire countries and social groups find themselves in a situation of food insecurity, with limited access to sufficient food for a healthy and active life, even though there is enough food to fulfil everyone's needs.”
FEBA has 29 member countries in Europe from Portugal to Ukraine and from Norway to Malta. Its mission is to contribute to a reduction of food insecurity in Europe, through the prevention of food waste and developing food banks in countries where they are most needed. In 2019 FEBA redistributed 768,000t of food waste which otherwise would have been sent to landfill, equivalent to 4.2m daily meals, through 45,283 charities assisting 9.5 million deprived people. The FEBA network has 430 food banks and branches, 32,280 co-workers of which 84% are volunteers.
She describes the food banks in Europe as a bridge between the supply chain (from agriculture to the food service sector) and the charities assisting the most deprived people. Effectively food banks are non-profit organisations which, on a daily basis, recover surplus food. This food is perfectly safe and edible but cannot be sold for a variety of reasons.
“Being too close to its expiry date, an error on the packaging or it's a seasonal product – this type of surplus food makes up 70% of the total amount coming into food banks but significant product volumes come from what is withdrawn from the market in order to stabilise prices,” Frigo said, explaining the main sources.
COVID changes
Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, European food banks remained open but faced huge challenges, operating in a new and complex environment. Demand for food increased by up to 50% compared to the pre-COVID-19 period.
“These are people that for the first time are in need. Four months ago, this kind of poverty that we are facing did not exist in Europe,” Frigo outlined.
FEBA members in Germany launched a campaign to raise awareness about expiry dates and preparation kitchens were set up in Norway
Volatility in supplies was a major challenge due to panic buying at supermarkets and a resulting decrease in food coming from supermarkets. However, new sources of supply, especially restaurants or canteens which were forced to close, became available including the surplus food from the canteens of the European Commission in Brussels.
Each country differed in their response from recovering a lot of potatoes in Belgium to recovering surplus foods from airline companies in France. FEBA members in Germany launched a campaign to raise awareness about expiry dates and preparation kitchens were set up in Norway.
According to FoodCloud, the Irish Food bank, Ireland has mirrored the experience of the food banking community across Europe. During COVID-19 they saw their highest and lowest weeks of food redistribution.
FoodCloud was founded by Aoibheann O'Brien and Iseult Ward in 2012. It has developed a software platform that enables businesses to redistribute surplus food to charities.
Head of international partnerships Emma Walsh with FoodCloud: “The closures of schools and charities has resulted in reduced access to food for many and COVID has financially impacted a large number of people, resulting in increased requests for food aid. By working very closely with our supply chain partners FoodCloud doubled the weekly volume of food redistributed and recruited eight new staff to support the increased demand.”
Learnings from the crisis
Frigo was keen to point out that the food banks have demonstrated an ability to adapt quickly, providing a valuable service to the food supply chain in terms of food sustainability and food security. When questioned on the role and perception of private investors in this space, she said that “it is evident that we can tackle food waste only if we collaborate so the contribution of each stakeholder, including financial/impact investors, can be a driving force to reach this objective”.
Ireland generates over 1m tonnes of food waste each year
She added that FEBA are looking at ways to validate their contribution. “We are also developing a data collection system with members. We want to go even further though and we are also trying to assess our impact in terms of the environment, so for example, if thanks to our activity, there is a reduction in CO2.”
Ireland generates over 1m tonnes of food waste each year of which approximately one third is generated in households (117kg of food waste per household). The cost per household is between €400 and €1,000 per year.
In July, three initiatives aimed at reducing food waste generated by food businesses, retailers or suppliers in rural areas secured €300,000 in funding from the Department of Agriculture.
Read more
Food waste projects secure €300,000 in funding
A perfect match with FoodCloud
Food waste is an increasing concern in Europe, high on the political agenda. In the EU, 33 million people cannot afford a quality meal every second day. Food assistance is essential for many people across the EU and yet 20% of the food produced is wasted which comes at an estimated cost of €143bn. Through the European Green Deal and Farm to Fork Strategy, the Commission has committed to halving per capita food waste at retail and consumer level by 2030 with legally binding targets.
Secretary general of European Foodbanks Federation (FEBA) Angela Frigo (left) put it plainly: “So in our modern society where there is abundance and scarcity, entire countries and social groups find themselves in a situation of food insecurity, with limited access to sufficient food for a healthy and active life, even though there is enough food to fulfil everyone's needs.”
FEBA has 29 member countries in Europe from Portugal to Ukraine and from Norway to Malta. Its mission is to contribute to a reduction of food insecurity in Europe, through the prevention of food waste and developing food banks in countries where they are most needed. In 2019 FEBA redistributed 768,000t of food waste which otherwise would have been sent to landfill, equivalent to 4.2m daily meals, through 45,283 charities assisting 9.5 million deprived people. The FEBA network has 430 food banks and branches, 32,280 co-workers of which 84% are volunteers.
She describes the food banks in Europe as a bridge between the supply chain (from agriculture to the food service sector) and the charities assisting the most deprived people. Effectively food banks are non-profit organisations which, on a daily basis, recover surplus food. This food is perfectly safe and edible but cannot be sold for a variety of reasons.
“Being too close to its expiry date, an error on the packaging or it's a seasonal product – this type of surplus food makes up 70% of the total amount coming into food banks but significant product volumes come from what is withdrawn from the market in order to stabilise prices,” Frigo said, explaining the main sources.
COVID changes
Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, European food banks remained open but faced huge challenges, operating in a new and complex environment. Demand for food increased by up to 50% compared to the pre-COVID-19 period.
“These are people that for the first time are in need. Four months ago, this kind of poverty that we are facing did not exist in Europe,” Frigo outlined.
FEBA members in Germany launched a campaign to raise awareness about expiry dates and preparation kitchens were set up in Norway
Volatility in supplies was a major challenge due to panic buying at supermarkets and a resulting decrease in food coming from supermarkets. However, new sources of supply, especially restaurants or canteens which were forced to close, became available including the surplus food from the canteens of the European Commission in Brussels.
Each country differed in their response from recovering a lot of potatoes in Belgium to recovering surplus foods from airline companies in France. FEBA members in Germany launched a campaign to raise awareness about expiry dates and preparation kitchens were set up in Norway.
According to FoodCloud, the Irish Food bank, Ireland has mirrored the experience of the food banking community across Europe. During COVID-19 they saw their highest and lowest weeks of food redistribution.
FoodCloud was founded by Aoibheann O'Brien and Iseult Ward in 2012. It has developed a software platform that enables businesses to redistribute surplus food to charities.
Head of international partnerships Emma Walsh with FoodCloud: “The closures of schools and charities has resulted in reduced access to food for many and COVID has financially impacted a large number of people, resulting in increased requests for food aid. By working very closely with our supply chain partners FoodCloud doubled the weekly volume of food redistributed and recruited eight new staff to support the increased demand.”
Learnings from the crisis
Frigo was keen to point out that the food banks have demonstrated an ability to adapt quickly, providing a valuable service to the food supply chain in terms of food sustainability and food security. When questioned on the role and perception of private investors in this space, she said that “it is evident that we can tackle food waste only if we collaborate so the contribution of each stakeholder, including financial/impact investors, can be a driving force to reach this objective”.
Ireland generates over 1m tonnes of food waste each year
She added that FEBA are looking at ways to validate their contribution. “We are also developing a data collection system with members. We want to go even further though and we are also trying to assess our impact in terms of the environment, so for example, if thanks to our activity, there is a reduction in CO2.”
Ireland generates over 1m tonnes of food waste each year of which approximately one third is generated in households (117kg of food waste per household). The cost per household is between €400 and €1,000 per year.
In July, three initiatives aimed at reducing food waste generated by food businesses, retailers or suppliers in rural areas secured €300,000 in funding from the Department of Agriculture.
Read more
Food waste projects secure €300,000 in funding
A perfect match with FoodCloud
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