Around 330,000 tonnes of edible food is wasted or fed to animals each year before leaving farms.
This new food waste scheme, which continues a pledge by former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, will offer grants starting from £20k to the not-for-profit food redistribution sector in England.
The funding could enable successful applicants to buy new equipment, such as balers or hoppers, to collect or process bulky food items into parcels; and technology to help donors and food redistribution charities work more closely. Money could also help provide more training to staff to enhance their IT and food safety skills.
“Following years of campaigning by FareShare and The Felix Project, we are delighted that this fund will become a reality,” Charlotte Hill and Kris Gibbon-Walsh co-CEOs of The Felix Project said in a joint statement.
“We are pleased that the government has recognised that too much food goes to waste on our farms and that it should be redistributed to feed people who need it.
“It is vital that the scheme is delivered in a manner that maximises the redistribution of surplus food to those who need it, while addressing the systemic challenges that create waste.
“Collaboration across the food industry, charitable redistribution sector, government, and farmers will be key to achieving this.”
Harriet Lamb, CEO of WRAP, added: “This is welcome support for farmers and redistribution organisations ensuring more quality food is rescued and can support more people and communities, while reducing the environmental impact of food waste on climate change.
“It gives a flying start to the New Year, ensuring that food charities and the farming sector can both make a difference immediately and can develop long term solutions. Every year, the amount of surplus food being redistributed is going up, but sadly the need is also increasing so this gives a much-needed boost. Last year, 191,000 tonnes of food from retailers, food manufacturers, the hospitality sector and UK farms – worth £764m – was redistributed with the potential to make 450 million meals.”
To help end the throwaway society, the Government has formed a Circular Economy Taskforce, comprising members from industry, academia, and civil society across the UK. They will lead on the development of a Circular Economy Strategy for England, which will be published this year, outlining how individual sectors can contribute to ambitions in this area.
This is alongside continued support for the Courtauld Commitment 2030, managed by environmental NGO WRAP which looks to deliver a more sustainable supply chain and reduce food waste in the home.
“We are confident that this scheme will be a step towards achieving a zero-waste economy, contributing towards environmental goals that we have signed up to at recent COPs and under the Sustainable Development Goals, and that it will strengthen the sense of community and shared responsibility that the Prime Minister has spoken about,” added The Felix Project CEOs.
