Denmark against Food Waste

This Action aligns with the following Calls to Action from the Circular Economy Action Agenda for Food:

4. Better Understand Hotspots of Food Loss and Waste

5. Integrate Food Loss and Waste More Broadly in the SDG Agenda

6. Increase Investment in Food Loss and Waste Reduction

10. Increase Information Accessibility and Data Utilization

“To fight food waste, we need a united movement and we believe that the setup of our think tank could serve as an inspiration for other countries and industries.”

- Anne Lerche, Head of Secretariat, ONE\THIRD

Project location

Denmark

Leading partner

ONE\THIRD, a think tank operating as an independent organization under the Danish Ministry of Environment and Food.

Ambition behind ‘Denmark against food waste’

Short-term: Unite Danish food producers and retailers behind the commitment to halve the country’s food waste by 2030.

Long-term: Showcase a model for successful cross-sector collaboration to solve social-environmental challenges in Denmark and around the world.

Food loss and waste in Denmark and around the world

Across the global food chain, more than one third of food is lost or wasted. This amounts to 1.3 billion tons of food wasted globally and 700.000 tons of food being thrown away in Denmark every year.

This has several consequences for our planet, humanity and our global economy:

Resource use: Globally, 1.4 billion hectares of agricultural land and 250km3 of water are used to produce food that is lost or wasted.
Hunger: The food lost or wasted globally could be used to feed 2 billion people.
Climate change: The global carbon footprint of food waste is estimated at 3.3 billion tons of CO2 equivalent of GHG annually. In Denmark, the annual carbon footprint of food waste is estimated 2,3 million tons of CO2.

Economic value: Around the world, food worth $940b is lost or wasted every year.

How ‘Denmark against food waste’ prevents food loss and waste

'Denmark against food waste’ is a voluntary agreement that unites 25+ food producers and retailers behind a shared mission: to halve food waste by 2030.

This is their plan of action:

ONE\THIRD identifies partners across the food chain in relevant Danish regions.

The organizations sign a voluntary agreement to measure their progress on reducing food waste and report it to a neutral third party.
The members of the voluntary agreement co-develop a methodology and metrics to measure food waste reliably.
The applicability of the measurements is tested.
ONE\THIRD publishes a yearly report on general progress on preventing food waste and loss in Denmark.
ONE\THIRD explores possibilities to replicate the model in other regions or industries.

Partners

Aldi, Alfred Pedersen & Søn ApS, Appetize+, Carletti, Carlsberg Danmark, COOP, Dragrofa, Danish Crown, Hørkram, Jespers Torvekøkken, Kohberg, McDonalds, Meyers Madhus, Naturmælk, Nemlig.com, Nestlé, Orkla, Peter Larsen Kaffe, Regionshospitalet Randers, Salling Group, APPLiA, Bispebjerg og Frederiksberg Hospital, Chr. Hansen, Daka Danmark, Dansk Industri, Dansk Erhverv, Eachthing, eSmiley, FødevareBanken, Folkekirkens Nødhjælp, Horesta, Landbrug Foedevare, Rema 1000, Stop spild lokalt, Stryhns, Stop Spild Af Mad, Danmarks Restauranter & Cafeer (DRC), De Samvirkende Købmænd, Aarstiderne, Arla, Danish Region Hovedstaden, Local Government Denmark (KL).