Chefs called upon to cut food waste

By James McAllister

- Last updated on GMT

Chefs called upon to cut food waste

Related tags Waste Waste management Sustainability Restaurant Chef Government

Chefs and hospitality professionals are being urged to act now to reduce the amount of food waste the industry creates over the next 12 years.

The call comes from the Government’s Food Surplus and Waste Champion Ben Elliot ahead of next week’s Step up to the Plate symposium, which he will host at London’s Victoria and Albert Museum.

Those attending the event will be expected to sign up to a number of commitments that include cutting wastage by 50% by 2030 in line with UN Sustainable Development Goal 12.3, and embracing a Food Conversation week of action in November 2019.

Wasting food is an environmental, moral and financial scandal,” says Elliot.

“We intend for the symposium and pledge to spark action, not just conversation, and inspire us all to champion change.”

The UK currently ranks 24th in the world when it comes to reducing food waste, according to Philip Simpson, commercial director of the food waste recycler ReFood.

Last month Simpson told BigHospitality​ that the average restaurant loses £20,000 every year as a direct result of poor food waste management, and offered several tips help hospitality managers curb such expenses.

“Together, we must end the moral, economic, and environmental scandal of food waste,” adds Environment Secretary Michael Gove, who will co-host next week’s Step up to the Plate event alongside Elliot.

The food waste symposium will run alongside the V&A’s FOOD: Bigger than the Plate exhibition, which will explore similar themes when it opens to the public on Saturday 18 May.

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