558 Reports
Denmark
Introducing a new Danish Think Tank Against Food Waste
Gundula Kjaer*
I. An Initiative Launched by the Danish
Food Industry
In October 2018, the Danish Ministry of Environment
and Food joined forces with the initiators behind the
project “Denmark Against Food Waste”. The project
was originally created by 15 companies within Dan-
ish retail and food production, including Salling
Group A/S and Arla amba, as well as the NGOs Stop
Waste of Food and The Foodbank.
The companies and organisations joined together
earlier this year in an ambitious partnership in the
fight against food waste. With the collaboration each
party has committed to make an effort towards re-
ducing food waste and to collect data and publish its
progress. The initiative is based on the UN’s World
Sustainable Development Goal and was launched in
August 2018 with the aim of a 50% reduction in food
waste in Denmark by 2030.
Almost simultaneously, the Danish Ministry of En-
vironment and Food launched a new Danish think
tank. The purpose of the think tank is to ensure a
broad foundation of work to prevent food waste and
loss and to ensure professionally supported efforts.
As such, it is part of the concept that the think tank
is to be based on a cooperative effort throughout the
entire Danish food chain.
The parties are now joining the projects in order
to achieve their common goals to improve climate ac-
tion through less CO2 emission and to ensure better
use of the Earth’s resources.
II. Close Partnership between Public
and Private Stakeholders
The joint partnership between the Danish Ministry
of Environment and Food and the creators of “Den-
mark Against Food Waste” is one of many examples
of the Danish public authorities collaborating with
industry stakeholders on essential societal topics.
EFFL 6|2018
The collaboration will be based on the framework
and concept carried out under the private manage-
ment within the Danish industry, and from here ex-
pand the project with a national plan of action and
by bringing in even more organisations.
Besides the already established concept, the think
tank will give rise to a number of new projects. This
will include a voluntary agreement on a common re-
duction target for the entire food chain from the stage
of production to the end-user. Other projects will be
established to support efforts and to achieve the ob-
jectives of the voluntary agreement.
The think tank secretariat is to set out and quali-
fy intermediate aims, specific efforts, data collection
and reporting as well as assist with communication.
III. One of many Initiatives Against
Food Waste
“Denmark Against Food Waste” is one of many pri-
vate initiatives that has been launched over the past
couple of years. The organisation “Stop waste of food”
is one of the country’s largest consumerist lobby
groups against food waste and the creator of various
initiatives, including a national educational cam-
paign in Danish schools as well as the certification
scheme “Refood” targeted at companies and organi-
sations in the food and services industry. The con-
cept behind the certification scheme is to raise the
profile of restaurants’, hotels’ and other food produc-
ers’ efforts to reduce the waste of food.
The voluntary organisation “The Foodbank” was
founded in 2008 and was, according to the Foodbank,
the first Nordic initiative to systematically address
food waste in the industry. The vision of the organi-
* Regulatory affairs manager at the Bech-Bruun law firm, Copen-
hagen.
EFFL 6|2018
sation is to distribute surplus foods from producers
of food and wholesales to the socially deprived part
of the population.
1 According to the organization “Stop Waste of Food”: <http://www
.stopspildafmad.dk/madspildital.html> (referring to data from the
Ministry of Environment and Food and the Environmental Protec-
tion Agency, the report ”Kortlægning af sammensætningen af
dagrenovation og kildesorteret organisk affald fra husholdninger”).
Reports 559
In January 2016, the app “Too good to go” was
launched in Denmark and is currently active in eight
countries within Europe. Through the app, restau-
rants, hotels and food stores, among others, can reach
the user with offers on surplus food at a favourable
price.
As a result of these many initiatives, food waste
has been reduced by 8% per Danish citizen over the
last six years,1 and it will be interesting to follow the
work in the think tank.
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prohibited without permission.