The Hon Sussan Ley MP, Minister for the Environment
The Hon Trevor Evans MP, Assistant Minister for Waste Reduction and Environmental Management
Some of the world's biggest and most competitive food retailers and manufacturers have come together in a bid to halve Australia's food waste, signing up to a new agreement with the Australian Government to meet or beat the ambitious target by 2030.
Minister for the Environment Sussan Ley said the Australian Food Pact, a voluntary agreement between retailers, manufacturers, growers and suppliers has the backing of industry heavyweights Woolworths Group, Coles, Goodman Fielder, Mars Australia, Simplot Australia, McCain and Mondelez Australia.
"Each year we waste around 7.6 million tonnes of food which is why the Australian Government has set an aggressive target of halving food waste by 2030," Minister Ley said.
"That challenge goes right across the supply chain - from the grower to the home - the Australian Food Pact is the first time we will have the major players in the same room working towards that goal.
"With food waste costing the economy roughly $36 billion a year, we need collaboration between business and government without the threat of regulation.
"Australian Food Pact creates that space for businesses to come together, to work through their food waste issues and to collaborate up and down the supply chain."
Assistant Minister for the Environment Trevor Evans said the Australian Food Pact will be good for consumers, boost jobs and help to protect the environment.
"By signing up to the voluntary agreement, business is demonstrating leadership in the push for circularity in food production, sustainability and environmental protection," Assistant Minister Evans said.
Supported by $4 million in Morrison Government funding, organisation Stop Food Waste Australia will drive the policies and collaboration between businesses that sign up to the Australian Food Pact.
Stop Food Waste Australia CEO Dr Steven Lapidge said Australians waste 7.6 million tonnes of food each year, equivalent to more than 300kg of wasted food per person per year.
"The Australian Food Pact will bring together businesses from along the length of the supply chain - from farm to fork - to work together to reduce food loss and waste," Dr Lapidge said.
"We've been heartened by the response of the Australian food industry to joining the Australian Food Pact, which will see signatories tackle waste, improve profitability, respond to supply risks, provide innovative solutions, be more competitive, and provide quality products with lower environmental impacts."
The inaugural signatories for the Australian Food Pact are:
• Simplot Australia
• Woolworths Group
• Coles
• Mars Australia
• Mondelēz Australia
• Goodman Fielder
• ARECO Pacific
• McCain Foods
For more on the Australian Food Pact: https://www.stopfoodwaste.com.au/australian-food-pact/
To view the launch of the Australian Food Pact at 3.30pm today, visit: https://hopin.com/events/stop-food-waste-australia-launch/registration
About the Australian Food Pact
The Australian Food Pact is a voluntary agreement bringing together organisations from 'farm-to-fork' across the Australian food industry. It is a pre-competitive collaboration including the primary production, processing and manufacturing, wholesale, retail, hospitality, institutions, and household sectors, and is designed to make the Australian food system more sustainable, resilient, and circular as part of Australia's goal of halving its food waste by 2030.
About Stop Food Waste Australia
Stop Food Waste Australia (SWFA) was established in January 2021 with funding from the Australian Government, and is a partnership including federal, state, and local governments, the food industry and food rescue charities. SFWA is part of independent non-profit company and charity, Fight Food Waste Limited, which also operates the Fight Food Waste Cooperative Research Centre.
