Retailers and suppliers have smashed targets for reducing supply chain and packaging waste but household waste targets have been missed, a report revealed today.
Traditional grocery product and packaging waste in the supply chain was reduced by 7.4%, or 217,000 tonnes per year, far exceeding the 5% target.
However, a 3.7% reduction in household food and drink water fell short of the 4% target, although Wrap said avoidable household food waste was reduced by 5.3%, saving consumers £700m and local authorities £20m a year in 2012.
“During the course of Courtauld 2 financial savings of around £3.1bn were made, by signatories and their customers,” said Wrap CEO Dr Liz Goodwin. “These are impressive results. The final outcome of phase 2 shows how collaborative working achieves results that have financial benefits to the UK and deliver significant reductions in environmental impact.
“We know there is still more we can do and I’m delighted to see 50 leading retailers, brands and manufacturers signed up to the Courtauld Commitment 3 showing their continued commitment.”
“These results show that retailers achieved a great deal against very challenging targets,” said BRC head of environment Alice Ellison.
“It’s particularly pleasing to see that the supply chain waste target has been smashed so comprehensively – this was a really ambitious goal which required significant investment and change to existing processes, so it’s great to see that these efforts have paid off.
“While the results suggest a slight shortfall on reduction of household food waste, the progress made is still impressive if one accounts for an extra 660,000 households within this time period. The fact that avoidable food waste has seen significant reductions highlights that the range of approaches that retailers have been using – including giving clear storage advice and recipe ideas and offering a wider range of portion sizes – has been striking a chord with customers.”
Andrew Kuyk, director of sustainability at the Food and Drink Federation (FDF), also welcomed the news: “The Courtauld Commitment is an excellent example of how government and industry can work together in a voluntary framework for the benefit of everyone. We look forward to further progress as we continue to work with Wrap in the Commitment’s next phase.”
However, Wrap’s funding, especially for campaigns to cut food waste by the public, has come under severe threat because of government cuts.
Two weeks ago The Grocer revealed Defra had taken the axe to millions of pounds of projects aimed at cutting food waste, as part of an overall £10m cut in funding over the next two years, despite a recent report by Wrap claiming the problem costs the country £12.5bn per year.
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