United Nations Science-Policy-Business Forum on the Environment

The Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Marcus Gover spoke at the ‘Nature-positive Food Systems for a Healthy Planet and Healthy People’ session of the United Nations Science-Policy-Business Forum on the Environment, which took place on 18-20 February 2021. The panel addressed the importance of food waste data and the ‘Target-Measure-Act’ approach more broadly, along with work carried out in the United Kingdom and its success in reducing food waste.

Life under Covid-19: Food waste attitudes and behaviours in 2020

WRAP published its latest research on food waste behaviours in the context of the pandemic. WRAP’s International Engagement Director Richard Swannell highlighted this research at the virtual meeting of the Action & implementation sub-group of the EU Platform on Food Losses and Food Waste, which took place on 25 February 2021, where he presented WRAP’s work on setting new social norms around food waste at household level.

‘Food for thought’

On the Earthshot Prize website, as part of their Waste-Free World month of February, WRAP’s blogpost on 'Food for thought' looked at the significant impact wasted food has on the environment, provided inspiration for wasting less, and led into March’s 2021 Food Waste Action Week.

Tackling food waste in the United States

The United States multi-stakeholder nonprofit ReFED (Rethink Food Waste through Economics and Data) – a WRAP partner in the United States – released their 'Insights Engine' which shows that while food waste reduction efforts are starting to make an impact there, more needs to be done to reduce food loss and waste by 50% by 2030. They also released their 'Roadmap to 2030', which outlined seven key action areas where the United States food system must focus its food waste reduction efforts over the next 10 years.