Here's another very interesting article from today's Telegraph on the Government's 'War on Waste' campaign launched yesterday. As you may know, DEFRA believe scrapping 'Best Before' dates could reduce edible food wastage as consumers are confused to the difference between 'sell by', 'use by' and 'best before', however the FSA state with caution that 'There has to be a balance, as we have to protect consumer safety.' Hilary Benn, Secretary of State for the Environment commented that 'It's time for a new war on waste. It's not just about recycling more ... it's about rethinking the way we use resources in the first place'. He added 'Too many of us are putting things in the bin simply because we're not sure, we're confused .... this means we're throwing away thousands of tons of food every year, completely unnecessary'.
This is where Count On It labels come into there own, not only do they allow consumers to get the most out of their food and manage it more efficiently, they also enable consumers to know if the product is still safe to eat, whilst minimising unnecessary edible food wastage. Also, as food packaging sizing is also cited to be a contributory factor to food waste, Count On It labels can help here as larger portions could still be purchased, just divided into smaller ones, labelled and frozen at home for later use. Here the consumer reaps the benefits of the cost saving and is secure in the knowledge that their food is still safe to eat.
As well as re-educating the consumers attitude towards food waste, the plans aim to deal with packaging, more 'on-the-go' recycling points and also plans to use the waste we do produce as fuel.
'Sell by' dates could be a thing of the past as part of a wide-ranging Government "war on waste".
By Louise Gray, Environment Correspondent
Published: 7:00AM BST 10 Jun 2009
Waste and Resources Action Programme (Wrap) claimed 6.7 million tonnes of food is thrown away every year.In an attempt to cut the amount of rubbish being sent to landfill by reducing packaging, boosting recycling and cutting food waste, supermarkets will face prosecution for "excessive packaging" and be forced to use more recycled cardboard and plastic.
In the home more households will be issued with separate bins and expected to sort waste for recycling or face possible fines. Recycling rates will also be given a boost by providing more "on-the-go" recycling points in rail stations and on street corners.
But a key part of the environmental crackdown is a consultation on how to reduce the confusion around food labelling so that people do not throw away edible food. One option is to phase out "best before", "sell by" and "display until" labels in favour of "use by" which is an actual safety requirement.
Hilary Benn, the Environment Secretary, said the UK was needlessly throwing away millions of tonnes of packaging and food every year.
Mr Benn said people throw away food after the "best before" date even though it can be eaten.
"Too many of us are putting things in the bin simply because we're not sure, we're confused by the label, or we're just playing safe," he said.
Sell-by dates are used by retailers for stock control - but can end up confusing customers into throwing away perfectly good food.
Waste and Resources Action Programme (Wrap) claim 6.7 million tonnes of food is thrown away every year - most of which could be eaten.
Every day in the UK five million potatoes, 4.4 million whole apples, one million loaves of bread and one million slices of ham are discarded which could be eaten, it added. Worth £10 billion every year, it said every family was effectively throwing away £400.
The Food Standards Agency said best-before and use-by dates were still required under European law but it wanted to clarify the food labelling system for consumers.
The spokeswoman added: "We are talking to Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), Wrap, and the food industry to identify how we can better educate people about date markings on food and also address the confusion caused by the sell-by and display-until dates also used by food businesses.
"We want to see food waste minimised but we also need to ensure people do not take unnecessary risks with food safety."
However retailers and councils said it should be up to the consumer and the councils to decide the best way forward rather than being told by central Government.
Stephen Robertson, Director General of the British Retail Consortium, said it was about customer education.
"Scrapping best- before dates won't reduce food waste," he said. "Customer education will."
Among the other plans announced by the Government yesterday, they will:
:: Reduce packaging waste by encouraging people to report supermarkets that use "excessive packaging" to Trading Standards. New guidelines setting out exactly what "excessive packaging" is will make it easier to prosecute manufacturers.
:: Retailers will be asked to use more recycled material and provide more smaller portions to stop single people having to buy too much.
:: Recycling rates will be given a boost by collecting more bottles and tins from pubs, clubs and restaurants and providing "on-the-go" recycling points at airports or street corners for people to put in newspapers and plastic bottles.
:: Councils will be encouraged to start collecting more materials for recycling, for example different plastics other than plastic bottles.
However, the method of collection could also be changed after a different study found separating waste for recycling first at home, rather than dumping it all in one sack to be sorted by later, is more efficient.
This puts pressure on councils to force households to sort their own recycling, meaning in some homes it will necessary to have up to five bins for different materials including a slop bucket for food waste.
The Local Government Association warned councils should be left to decide the best way to deal with waste in different areas.
