Origin Green launches food waste guidance for member companies

ORIGIN Green, Ireland’s national food and drink sustainability programme, has launched a new Food Waste Guidance to support member companies to develop ambitious food waste targets and provide guidance on credible, effective food waste target setting.

To date, Origin Green members have committed to more than 70 food waste targets, and addressing the food waste challenge is a key priority for Origin Green manufacturing members. Within their waste target, they will identify if food waste occurs in their operations, and if so will seek to integrate company-wide actions to increase food waste prevention across their operations. For the retail and food service charter, food waste is a mandatory target for all members.

To support Origin Green member companies in developing credible and ambitious food waste targets within their Origin Green plans, Origin Green hosted a webinar to release a new food waste target guidance document. This document provides guidance for Origin Green members to enhance their existing food waste prevention actions as well as providing clarity on food waste target setting using the SMART target setting principle.

At the webinar, Martin Hofler, Sustainability Partnership & Development Manager at Origin Green presented an overview of the Origin Green Food Waste Guidance. He was joined by Odile Le Bolloch, the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Food Waste Prevention Team Lead, to learn more about EPA’s recently launched Food Waste Protocol.

Attendees also heard from Carla McSorley, FoodCloud’s Head of Irish Partnerships, who will share their food waste prevention supports available to Origin Green members, and Jeni Meade, communications manager at Meade Farm Group and heard how Meade Farm Group has become a zero-food waste facility by creating a new product, potato starch, that valorises their potato waste.

Mr said; “Addressing the food waste challenge is a clear priority for consumers, and is also a key goal for Origin Green manufacturing members. To date, Origin Green members have committed to over 70 food waste targets.”

Odile Le Bolloch, Food Waste Prevention Team Lead at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), said; “In Ireland, we generate approximately 770,300 tonnes of food waste every year, and it is estimated that food waste generates about 8% to 10% of global greenhouse gas emissions.”

Almost 300 food and drink companies across Ireland are verified members of Origin Green, representing over 90% of food and drink exports.