SAVE FOOD Initiative Passes the 1,000 Member Mark
Lidl Deutschland is the first retail company on board
Established in 2011, membership of the SAVE FOOD Initiative has now passed the 1,000 member mark. The 1,067 supporters currently registered include groups of companies, firms and professional associations as well as research institutes and NGOs from the entire food value chain. With Lidl Deutschland as the latest member, retail is now also represented as an important link in this supply chain.
“I am delighted that such a well-known retail company as Lidl Deutschland now also supports SAVE FOOD. Due to their proximity to consumers, food retailers, in particular, can make a substantial contribution to reducing food waste in the interest of sustainable use of resources,” said Werner Matthias Dornscheidt, President & CEO of Messe Düsseldorf, commenting on this fact.
According to FAO estimates, one third of all foodstuffs produced are lost or wasted. The reasons for food losses and waste differ by region: in the less developed countries of our world up to 40% of food perishes every day before it even reaches the consumer. By contrast, western industrialised nations such as Germany experience food waste predominantly at the end of the food value chain – especially in consumers’ homes.
The aim of the SAVE FOOD Initiative as a joint project with the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO), the United Nations’ Environment Programme (UNEP) and Messe Düsseldorf is to reduce food waste and food losses on a global scale. To this end it focuses on measures involving all parties concerned. The first step is to raise awareness about the issue and to pool the expertise of both public and private organisations. By creating the conditions needed for members to network with each other, it is hoped fundamental strategies will emerge to bring about concrete engagement and investment possibilities.
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