EAUC signs world-leading government pledge to help halve food waste

13th June 2019

EAUC, alongside big-hitters from the world of food and sustainability including Aldi, Asda, Café Nero, Co-op, Costa, FDF, Lidl, Sainsbury’s, Starbucks, Tesco, M&S, Morrisons, Nestlé, Ocado, UK Hospitality, Unilever, WWF and Waitrose have signed a pledge committing to help halve food waste by 2030, and raising public awareness of the issue through a week of action.

Currently in the UK an estimated 10.2 million tonnes of food and drink are wasted annually after leaving the farm gate, worth around £20 billion. It is estimated that UK householders spend £15 billion every year on food that could have been eaten but ends up being thrown away, equating to £500 a year for the average household.

Today’s announcement comes after the government’s Food Surplus and Waste Champion Ben Elliot urged organisations to ‘Step up to the Plate’ at a landmark symposium last month. The event brought together around 300 key players from various parts of the food industry for a day of targeted discussion and action.

Environment Secretary Michael Gove said:
“I am delighted to see so many UK food businesses commit to game-changing action to cut food waste, and I hope that others follow suit.

“The UK is showing real leadership in this area, but each year millions of tonnes of food is wasted.

“I want to thank our Food Surplus and Waste Champion for inspiring business to step up to the plate. Together we will end the environmental and economic scandal that is food waste.”

Food Surplus and Waste Champion Ben Elliot said:
“We are pleased to see these retailers committing to change. To those retailers yet to sign the pledge – why not? You have a responsibility to step up and do your bit.

“We will be highlighting those who participate and those who do not.  The food waste crisis can only be solved by collective action.”

Judith Batchelar OBE, Director of Sainsbury’s Brand said:
“Food waste is one of the biggest challenges currently facing today’s society and an intrinsic part of our combined response to tackle greenhouse gas emissions and climate change. At Sainsbury’s it continues to be an urgent and important priority for us to tackle.

“By working collaboratively with others, from suppliers through to fellow retailers, we can work to eliminate surplus waste within every part of the supply chain process and achieve the impact that we all want to see.”

Dave Lewis, Chair of Champions 12.3 and Group CEO Tesco said:
“Today’s announcement that over 100 UK food companies have signed up to the Step up to the Plate pledge is welcome news. The next step is for all signatories to publicly report their food waste data in line with Champions 12.3 best practice.
“This will be crucial for identifying hotspots that require collective action; holding individual companies to account for the commitments they have made and for the UK delivering on Sustainable Development Goal 12.3.”

Earlier this year the government launched a £15 million game-changing scheme to tackle food waste, building on its landmark Resources and Waste Strategy which sets out how the government will introduce annual reporting of food surplus and waste by food businesses.

Environment Secretary Michael Gove has invited organisations to apply for the second round of more than £6 million funding under government’s game-changing scheme to slash food waste. We would like to see larger food businesses report their food waste transparently on an annual basis in line with UN Sustainable Development Goal 12.3. We will consult later this year on mandatory reporting for larger businesses.

The government is committed to supporting the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal 12.3 to help halve food waste by 2030, report on progress and prioritise action.

The list of organisations that have signed the ‘Step up to the Plate’ pledge at the date of publication of this press notice are:
Aberdeen Ltd.
Aldi
Allied Bakeries
Apetito
Approved Food
Approved Food Limited
Asda
Bakkavor Group
Barfoots
Baxter Storey
Berry Gardens
Bidfood
Boots
Bread and Butter Thing
Bread and Honey
British Frozen Food Federation
Café Nero
Central England Coop
ChicP
Chilled Food Association
Company Shop
Compass Group
Cooke Genie
Costa
Cranswick
Dale Farm
Daylesford Organic
Denhay Farms LTD
Department for the Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra)
Direct Produce Supplies Ltd.
Earth Changers
East End Foods
EAUC - The alliance for sustainability leadership in education
Eden Project
Ellen MacArthur Foundation
Environment Agency
Felix Project
Flawsome
Food and Drink Federation
Food Bytes
Foodchain Technologies Limited
Fortnum & Mason
Fresh Produce Consortium
Gather and Gather
Gen Mills
General Mills
Greencore
G’s Fresh Limited
Harper Adams University
Heckfield Place
Hilton Food Group
His Church
Hummingbird Technologies
Industry Council for Packaging & the Environment
Institute of Grocery Distribution
Intercontinemtal Hotels Group
It’s Fresh
Karma
Karmalicious LTD
KP Snacks
Lidl
London Restaurant Festival
Marks and Spencer
Morrisons
National Farmers Union
Neighbourly
Nestlé
Nibsetc
Ocado
Old Oak Primary School
Olio
Plan Zheroes
Plot Kitchen
Rubies In The Rubble
Sainsbury’s
Samworth Brothers
Selfridges
Smart Store Cooking
Starbucks
Sustainable Restaurant Association
Tesco
The Packaging Federation
The Real Junk Food Project
Toast Ale
Too Good To Go
UK Hospitality
Unilever UK and Ireland
Victoria and Albert Museum
Waitrose
Waste Food Solutions
Wasteless
Winnow
World Resources International
World Wide Fund for Nature
WRAP