A call for proposals for food waste reduction initiatives has been made by Minister for Agriculture Charlie McConalogue.

Total funding of €165,000 is available for proposals relating to the promotion and development of innovative food waste reduction projects.

Funding will be awarded on a competitive basis for projects which are designed to reduce food waste generated in rural areas.

This call for proposals, according to the Minister, will help to address the overall objective under the Rural Innovation and Development Fund.

It will also help to energise the rural economy by encouraging innovative job creation and sustainable enterprise development, he said.

Goal alignment

"The funding provided under this programme aligns with many of the goals in my Department’s ambitious strategy for the agri-food sector Food Vision 2030.

"It is more important than ever that we support and promote important initiatives such as those that tackle food waste, as they can form part of the solutions for us to achieving our climate targets. Ireland generates over 1m tonnes of food waste each year, so we simply must address this issue," he said.

The call for proposals, which comes under the 2024 Rural Innovation and Development Fund, relates to the provision of services for the support of food waste reduction projects which are designed to reduce food waste generated by primary producers and food businesses in rural areas.

This scheme aims to identify, target and address what is a major issue not just here in Ireland but globally, the Minister added.

The closing date for receipt of applications is noon on 22 March 2024.