- AVARE - Adding Value in Resource Effective Food Systems
- Avoiding Losses in the Food Sector: Research Transfer into SME Practice
- Food Waste in Schools
- Reducing Food Waste in the Field of Bread and Baked Goods. Developing a Concept for Trade, Craft and Consumer.
- Reducing the Loss and Disposal of Goods in the Out-of-Home Catering Sector - Contribution to Increasing Resource Efficiency
- Guideline for Canteen Kitchens and Suppliers - Reducing Food Waste Together
- Sustainably Healthy/Duurzam gezond (INTERREG IV A, Euregio Rhein-Waal)
- Reducing Food Waste - Identifying Causes and Courses of Action in North Rhine-Westphalia
AVARE - Adding Value in Resource Effective Food Systems
The EU project AVARE intends to reduce food waste and generate an added economic value through the production of bio-based products with food waste as their raw material.
Avoiding Losses in the Food Sector: Research Transfer into SME Practice
National and international projects have already developed numerous ways to support avoiding food waste. This large number of instruments is difficult to navigate and selecting appropriate support instruments for a business is extremely time-consuming. As a result, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in particular often do not have access to existing solutions for food waste reduction.
The project therefore researches and pools relevant instruments from science and practice, and provides them on an internet platform for SMEs in a needs-based way. Both the structure of the internet platform and the transfer of findings into the public was carried out in a participative process together with business and multipliers. Among the practice partners are businesses from trade, industry, craft and catering. The supporting multipliers are comprised of federation representatives from different sectors and the trade press.
Transfer of Studies on Food Waste on a Website
Food Waste in Schools
In collaboration with the network centre for school and daycare catering Rhineland-Palatinate, the meal plans from six project schools in Rhineland-Palatinate were analysed and their waste volume was systematically examined in the spring of 2015. The food waste was measured for a week and categorised into production residues in the own or the caterer's kitchen, serving and plate residues.
Individual approaches for improvement were pointed out to the schools to reduce unnecessary waste of resources and to promote ethically and socially responsible action and to achieve a positive effect on image and financial benefit with it. The results from the food waste measurements from the six pilot schools, introduced at the symposium "Mensa macht Schule" on 13th October, are not representative for the overall situation in Rhineland-Palatinat. However, the findings indicate tendencies that might motivate and sensitise further schools. For that, the network centre together with the iSuN published an idea catalogue on nutritional education in schools at the Day of School Catering in Rhineland-Palatinate.
Reducing Food Waste in the Field of Bread and Baked Goods. Developing a Concept for Trade, Craft and Consumer.
More than 13.000 bakeries with more than 280.000 employees sell about 1 million tons of bread and baked goods nationwide (Central Association of the German Bakery Craft). In our society, every fifth bread produced does not reach the consumers stomach. In our study, we have developed measures for bakeries to reduce loss of goods and ways of communicating with the customers.
Empowering the crafts and increasing the appreciation for bread both in production and for the end-consumer were the focus of the project as long-term goals. Avoiding losses of bread and baked goods reliably is a medium-term process at least, and the set screws in the intertwining fields of production, trade and consumption have to be constantly readjusted.
On every level, this process depends on the attitude of the actors involved:
• the artisanal quality awareness in the bakeries,
• the responsible behaviour at the point of sale and
• the appreciation and cooperation of the end-consumer.
Guidelines for Businesses and Consumers:
You can now find the instruments and templates that were developed in the project as well as training material for selling bread and baked goods on the website of the project "Reducing Losses in the Food Sector: Research Transfer into SME Practices".
Reducing the Loss and Disposal of Goods in the Out-of-Home Catering Sector - Contribution to Increasing Resource Efficiency
The project gual is to identify the status quo of the disposal of goods in the out-of-home catering sector and the development of practical solution approaches. Applicable, economically interesting and ecologically sensible solution approaches can be developed through close cooperation with catering businesses. These approaches enable the businesses to act profitably, to offer their customers an adequate amount of fresh meals through cost reduction in production and disposal, and to reduce the unnecessary and irresponsible waste of resources.
Guideline for Canteen Kitchens and Suppliers - Reducing Food Waste Together
The iSuN has developed a guideline on reducing food waste for kitchen management. The aim is for canteen kitchens and their suppliers to reduce food waste cooperatively. To reduce the ecological, economic and social impacts of food waste, the topic has to be spread into more kitchens. The guideline suggests futher documents for download that help kitchens in practice:
- Guideline for Canteen Kitchens and Suppliers - Reducing Food Waste Together (German) (pdf, 0.79 MB)
- Specific Measures and Steps to Avoid Food Leftovers in Canteen Kitchens (German) (pdf, 554.79 KB)
- Food Waste Measurement Procedure (German) (pdf, 632.8 KB)
- Example of a measuring document (German) (pdf, 233.44 KB)
- Example for Customer Communication (German) (pdf, 86.16 KB)
Sustainably Healthy/Duurzam gezond (INTERREG IV A, Euregio Rhein-Waal)
This German-Dutch pilot project focused on the development of supportive tools in five hospitals and retirement homes in the border region Arnheim-Nimwegen-Kleve to achieve a sustainable food supply. Its goals were the improvement of resource efficiency of catering as well as cost savings in the health sector. Preparing tasty, healthy food was supposed to have positive effects on the patients' health. In addition to the reduction of food waste, superior alternative ways of using non-avoidable food waste were to be detected.
Reducing Food Waste - Identifying Causes and Courses of Action in North Rhine-Westphalia
The project "Reducing Food Waste - Identifying Causes and Courses of Action in North Rhine-Westphalia" supports political decision makers in NRW and the participants of the Round Table "New Appreciation for Food" with the topic "Reduction of Food Waste." In a study on food waste in NRW, reliable data and their analysis will be provided in the project. Additionally, potential causes will be addressed. Potential measures for a goal-oriented action strategy "New Appreciation for Food" will be discussed.