Every year, a million tons of food ends up in the trash. If this amount of 18 tons were loaded into trucks, 50,000 heavy vehicles would be needed, forming a column from Vienna to Zurich, the Wiener Tafel reported. It is striking that private households have an absolute majority. 58 percent of the food that is still usable ends up privately with household waste.
14 percent of the still edible food in the waste comes from processing, nine percent from supermarkets and wholesalers and 19 percent from consumption outside the home, so roughly from restaurants and communal kitchens, according to the Wiener Tafel on the occasion of Food Rescue Day this Friday (26 May). In her statements she bases herself on data from the initiative ‘Land creates life’.
To counteract this, more knowledge about food should be built up in childhood, says Maria Fanninger, founder of “Land creates life”. The transfer of this knowledge should therefore also play an important role in schools.
“Creating knowledge and awareness”
Likewise Alexandra Gruber, director of the Wiener Tafel: “More and more tasty food still ends up in the garbage, while about 500,000 people in Austria do not know how to feed properly. To change that, we need to create knowledge and awareness,” she said.
WWF demands five-point plan
The WWF called for a five-point plan on Food Rescue Day and also drew attention to the impact of discarded food on climate change. “About ten percent of global greenhouse gas emissions are due to food waste,” said Dominik Heizmann, spokesperson for sustainable food at WWF Austria.
Appeal: Create a hierarchy for dealing with excess food
The list of demands: First, according to the WWF, binding targets for reducing food waste must be set for all sectors of the value chain. Secondly, clear rules should be established by the federal government that establishes a clear hierarchy for dealing with food surpluses. Avoiding it has the highest priority, followed by further processing and disclosure. Food should only be used for energy and should be thrown away when all other options have been exhausted.
Avoid pointless throwing away”
Thirdly, according to the WWF, the passing on of food should be promoted and pointless waste should be avoided. To do this, the government would have to remove legal hurdles and establish tax incentives. Fourth, according to the nature conservation organization, the data situation must be improved, for which “all sectors of the value chain must provide more information about the amounts and causes of food waste”. Reliable data for agriculture, for example, has that. And fifthly, it is about making more information possible – for example in schools and training centres.
Source: Krone
I am Wallace Jones, an experienced journalist. I specialize in writing for the world section of Today Times Live. With over a decade of experience, I have developed an eye for detail when it comes to reporting on local and global stories. My passion lies in uncovering the truth through my investigative skills and creating thought-provoking content that resonates with readers worldwide.
