Dear Friends and Colleagues,
Happy spring! Many of you are settling back home after a busy and productive time at Expo West. Although I wasn’t able to attend (Hi, FOMO), it’s great to see everyone starting to return to in-person collaboration and conferences.
It’s shaping up to be a busy season in the food waste space, with a lot of exciting updates already. Here are a few:
- My former client the Posner Foundation of Pittsburgh recently announced an open RFP for preventing food waste. Created through our strategic planning process, the RFP presents a significant opportunity for project funding targeted specifically at reshaping consumer environments. The LOI deadline is April 28; if interested, read more and apply here.
- Walmart and Sodexo recently signed up for the Pacific Coast Food Waste Commitment (PCFWC), one of the largest regional public-private food sustainability initiatives, which aims to reduce food waste by 50%. Both companies are already global leaders on food waste reduction including their work on the 10x20x30 initiative through the Champions 12.3. It’s encouraging to see these industry leaders participate in the PCFWC to help increase the impact and multiplier effect of these types of regional multi-stakeholder coalitions.
- In one of the more fun and innovative partnerships I’ve seen yet, Dole Sunshine Company just announced a partnership with social enterprise Musa Fabric to turn banana waste into clothing fibers, woven by inmates. The initiative provides skill-building and training to increase inmate employability post-release. Providing a solution to both food waste and the highly wasteful fashion industry, finished products will be sold via Musa Fabric in more than nine countries around the world.
Finally, ReFED’s 2022 Food Waste Summit — where I’ll be moderating a discussion surrounding consumer engagement— is fast approaching! Register for a virtual ticket here. And for those of you already planning to attend in Minneapolis, can’t wait to see you there.
Yours in partnership,
Eva
What We’re Reading
Across the Food System
China is Clamping Down on Food Waste – The Economist
Global Food Solidarity is Needed in Response to New IPCC Findings – GreenBiz
New Process to Produce Ethylene From Food Waste Without Greenhouse Gas Emissions – Tech Explorist
Ukraine War Threatens to Cause a Global Food Crisis – The New York Times
Washington Governor to Sign Bill Calling for 75% Reduction of Organic Waste Disposal by 2030 – Waste Dive
Expo West 2022: 5 Trends We Spotted on the Expo Floor – Spins
Upcycled Food Takes Center Stage at Expo West – Food Business News
How Waste Food Can Reduce Our Reliance on Natural Gas – BBC
Consumer Brands & Packaging
Plastic Packaging Increases Fresh Food Waste, Study Finds – The Guardian
DeliverZero Aims to Eliminate Single-Use Takeout Containers – The New York Times
Sustainability in the Food Industry: How Companies Can Get Ahead of Stakeholder Demands – Brink News
Ben & Jerry’s Teams With Wheyward Spirit to Revive Popular Flavor – Dairy Processing
Reloop Releases Study on Modernizing Deposit Return Systems – Recycling Today
Spare Tonic Takes Waste and Creates New Mixer – Forbes
AB InBev’s EverGrain Brings Used Beer Ingredients to Snacks and Planet-Based Milks – Food Dive
Beating Food Waste Needs Plastic — The Question is Where and When – GreenBiz
Agriculture
Food 4 Farmers Helps Coffee-Farming Families Overcome Seasonal Food Insecurity – FoodTank
Soil Proof: The Plan to Quantify Regenerative Agriculture – Civil Eats
Can an Illinois Bill Counteract the Decline of Black Farmers? – Civil Eats
A New California Law Will Create a Lot More Compost — But Will it Make it to Farmland? – Civil Eats