The Government has set itself the goal of halving food waste before the year 2030 thanks to the Food Loss and Waste Prevention bill that was approved this Tuesday by the Council of Ministers. This was stated by the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Luis Planas, at the press conference after the meeting.
The new rule provides penalties for supermarkets and restaurants that do not implement a plan to reuse food that cannot be put up for sale because it is at or after its expiration date, but has not yet passed its expiration date. preferred consumption. Not having this plan or not applying it may be sanctioned with up to 60,000 euros
Likewise, bars and restaurants must be able to offer their customers food that they have not consumed by offering them suitable and sustainable packaging. In this case, the fine for non-compliance can reach 2,000 euros.
“The recipients of the law are all the elements of the food chain. It is a regulatory and awareness-raising law, not an interventionist one. It imposes obligations, but above all it wants to raise awareness,” said Planas.
The main objective of the standard is to reuse food that cannot be marketed or served in the hotel industry for human food consumption. To do this, establishments selling food products of more than 400m2 and restaurants must have an agreement with a food donation NGO or their own specific project to sell them.
Likewise, these businesses will be able to sell food that is about to reach its expiration date at a discount and have lines of sale for “ugly, imperfect or unattractive” products.
The social initiative entities that are recipients of donations must guarantee the traceability of the donated products through a system for registering the entry and exit of the food received and delivered. They may only allocate these products to the donation, without in any case being able to market them, and they must do so without any type of discrimination between the beneficiaries.
Planas has pointed out that when food is no longer fit for human consumption, the preferred use will be animal feed and feed manufacturing, use as by-products in another industry and, ultimately, obtaining compost or biofuels.
The minister explained that only France and Italy have similar regulations within the European Union and highlighted that currently 40% of food waste occurs in the final sale and in homes. Throughout 2020, wasted food reached 1.3 billion kilos, an average of 31 per person.
The preliminary draft has been submitted to the public hearing procedure and four participatory forums dedicated to consumers and NGOs, distribution and the Horeca channel, industry and the primary sector have been held.
