Hungary launches Save Food Packaging conference

Representing the World Packaging Organisation (WPO) at the inaugural ‘Role that packaging plays in minimising food loss and waste’ conference that was hosted by the Hungarian Association of Packaging & Materials Handling (CSAOSZ), sent an extremely positive message that the wider packaging community is now discussing this important topic on a more global stage.

The conference speakers were of high calibre and included the Deputy State Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture, Hungary, UNIDO, WPO, the National Food Chain Safety Office, GS1 Hungary and many more stakeholders in the value chain discussing food waste, government initiatives, technology advancements and of course the true role that packaging can play in minimising food loss and waste. ?

A highlight was that two hours of the program was dedicated to discussing the Save Food Packaging Design Guidelines, that were developed by the AIP & RMIT as a part of End Food Waste Australia Cooperative Research Centre, and global award-winning best practice Save Food Packaging Design examples were showcased.

It is important that we must not lose sight that the true role of packaging is its functionality. Packaging needs to be designed to ensure that a product is protected, preserved, contained and transported all the way through the value chain from production until it is used in the household.

Inadequate packaging that results in wasted food defeats the whole purpose and is a much bigger waste of resources and environmental impacts.

The challenge for packaging technologists is to be able to design optimum packaging with the lowest environmental impact at the start. It is about finding the balance between not underpacking (wasting food) and not overpacking (wasting packaging materials) and being able to meet both 2030 Packaging and Food Waste Targets. If the balance is tipped either way it will create unintended consequences.

EU Member States set to measure and act on Food Waste Targets

Under the revision of the Waste Framework Directive in the European Commission, legally binding reduction targets and necessary measures will be required by Member States to reduce food waste by the end of 2030. These measures include reduction of food waste by 10% in processing and manufacturing, and by 30% (per capita) at retail and consumption (restaurants, food services and households).

Food Waste in Europe is currently sitting at 58 million tonnes per year which equates to an average 131 kilograms per person. Interestingly Portugal is one of the highest countries for food waste in Europe, sitting at approximately 124 kilograms a year per person. Comparatively Australia is 7.60 million tonnes of food wasted a year with an average of 312 kilograms per person.

In addition to the EU targets many countries like Hungary are already working on their own strategies and roadmaps to meet the 2030 food waste targets.

What is interesting to learn is that Hungary is one of the more advanced countries in the EU for Food Loss and Waste measurement and targets with a significant amount of work happening in the households.

The State of Food Loss & Waste in Hungary

According to a recent study Hungary produces close to 2 million tonnes of food waste every year. 46.59% of all food wasted goes to landfill and 25% goes to worm composting.

62% of all food wasted in Hungary is in the processing and production stages and the remaining 38% is in household consumption and retail.? The top three categories are Ready Meals, Fresh Produce and Bakery, which is not dissimilar to Australia.

According to recent data, food waste generated by Hungarian households was estimated at 59.85 kilograms per capita which has seen a significant decrease since 2021 which was sitting at 66.50 kilograms per person. The food wasted in households has been decreasing each year for the last seven years in Hungary which is a great example of what can be achieved with a roadmap.

Since 2016, Project Wasteless of the National Food Chain Safety Office of Hungary (Nébih) has been measuring the quantity and distribution of food waste in Hungarian households, following a direct measurement utilising a food waste diary. 8 out of 10 households underestimate how much they waste in their homes, and 13% believe that they could see substantial financial savings if they stopped wasting as much food in their homes. 50.87% of those surveyed believe that there is too much packaging, however 43% were satisfied with the amount of packaging being used.

Measures to prevent food waste include the establishment of a public awareness program called ‘No Leftovers’ by the National Food Chain Safety Office, which provides practical advice on how to effectively reduce food waste in households. An additional education and early childhood program was launched which has reached more than 400,000 children, and more than 800 teachers.

The government agencies in Hungary have developed multiple programs including one that ensures that all bread that is about to pass its best before date is shared with those in need. The Hungarian Food Bank Association and its partner organisations distribute around 11 thousand tonnes of food with a total value of around HUF 7.5 billion to people in need. (2019)

Leaving the conference, I realised that the next step is to see every Government across the world establish a food waste roadmap that is linked to the UN Sustainable Development Goals, global Food Waste regulations and targets and Environmental (ESG) policies, with a view to actively improve environmental and social impacts surrounding food waste for each country.

If each roadmap ensured that every person who suffered from food insecurity is being fed, that no edible food is being ploughed back into field, that food doesn’t end up in landfill, that all edible food is being utilised and that food rescue organisations are supported in times of natural disasters then we would be a better world. ?

Everyone has a role to play, and I commend the Hungarian Association of Packaging & Materials Handling (CSAOSZ) for having the foresight to be one of the first WPO Member countries in Europe to discuss the intersection between food waste and packaging.

Packaging has an important role to play, and I look forward to seeing even more companies across the globe embed the Save Food Packaging Design Guidelines into their packaging development processes. The ultimate objective is for every brand to design intuitive and innovative packs that not only contain, protect, preserve and transport a product all the way to a household, but also minimise food loss and waste across the value chain; all the while offering the lowest environmental impacts.

As one of the speakers said “Packaging is just like a car. A car is designed to protect the passengers, to make sure that they don’t feel the shocks or vibrations as they travel and to ensure they arrive at their destination safely.” ?

Nerida Kelton FAIP

Executive Director, AIP

Vice President Sustainability & Save Food, WPO

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Hungary launches Deposit Return Scheme (DRS)

Hungary recently launched their new deposit return system (DRS) for recycling single-use drink containers and so Nerida ventured off to find one of the machines and see how it all worked. Global reverse vending leader TOMRA has partnered with MOHU the central system administrator for the DRS, to roll out collection infrastructure to make drink container returns as convenient as possible for new recyclers. This DRS covers ready-to-drink or concentrated beverages (except milk and milk-based beverages), in single-use aluminium cans and glass/plastic bottles, ranging from 0.1 litres to 3 litres in size. Consumers pay a deposit of 50 Hungarian forint (approximately €0.13) when purchasing an eligible drink, which is refunded to them when they return the empty drink container for recycling. Drink containers in Hungary can be returned to grocery retailers such as Aldi.

WPO visits FAO Europe & Central Asia Office

During the trip to Hungary Nerida was also able to visit the FAO European and Central Asian Head Office and discuss how the WPO and FAO can strengthen ties and expand the current initiatives. ?FAO, UNIDO and WPO currently work together with Messe Dusseldorf, on the Save Food Org initiative. https://www.save-food.org/

?In the last 12 months the group have launched a new Save Food Org global project competition, and two awards programs for China, the Middle East and Africa to showcase innovative and intuitive Save Food Packaging and Sustainable Packaging.

The SAVE FOOD Project Competition promotes solutions that contribute to reducing the 1.3 billion tonnes of food being lost or wasted every year. Special emphasis is placed on supporting the stakeholders in the processing, packaging and distribution stages of the value chain with the aim to help the winner to enhance their potential for dealing with food sustainably and responsibly.

These new initiatives are designed to raise the voice on a global scale not only about the serious issues of Food Loss & Waste, Food insecurity, disparities in food distribution across the world, developing more sustainable food systems, but also about the role that packaging can play in minimising food loss and waste across global, regional and local value chains.

https://aipack.com.au/sig-foundation-wins-first-save-food-project-competition-and-plans-further-investment/

https://www.save-food.org/en/News/pacprocess_MEA_2023_-_SAVE_FOOD_Awards

https://www.save-food.org/en/News/swop_2023_-_SAVE_FOOD_Awards

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