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Players from the worlds of food retail and hospitality, along with social media influencers and chefs, have been urged to take ground-breaking action to drive down food waste from all

sources.

The ask comes from the government’s Food Surplus and Waste Champion Ben Elliot ahead of a major symposium called ‘Step up to the Plate’, which he will host next week alongside Environment

Secretary Michael Gove at London’s prestigious Victoria and Albert Museum.

Attendees will be expected to sign up to a number of commitments on measuring and reducing their own food waste and inspiring others to follow their lead.

The full pledge has been published today, giving organisations and people an opportunity to do their bit and sign up to take action.

Environment Secretary Michael Gove and Minister Thérèse Coffey are among the first to sign up to the pledge.

I want to thank our marvellous Food Surplus and Waste Champion Ben Elliot for his brilliant work in bringing together the biggest players from the world of food to commit to tackling food

waste.

Together, we must end the moral, economic, and environmental scandal of food waste. The UK is showing real leadership in this area, but I urge businesses to join me in signing the pledge so

we can bring about real change.

Wasting food is an environmental, moral and financial scandal. We intend for the symposium and pledge to spark action, not just conversation, and inspire us all to champion change.

Susan Barratt, Chief Executive Officer at Institute of Grocery Distribution, said:

IGD is fully supportive of the ‘Step up to the Plate’ symposium as an important event that will drive awareness of the need to reduce food waste. Some 90 food businesses across the UK have

committed to reduce food waste and share their data through the Food Waste Reduction Roadmap developed by WRAP and IGD, but there is more to be done. Our research highlights shopper concern,

with 40% seeing the environmental impacts of their food purchases as either very important or extremely important.

Helen Munday, Chief Scientific Officer, Food and Drink Federation said:

FDF fully supports the ‘Step up to the Plate’ pledge and the work being done to measure and reduce food waste. We actively encourage our members and the food and drink manufacturing industry

as a whole to take advantage of the range of helpful tools available to do so. These include the ‘Target, Measure and Act’ approach set out in the UK Food Waste Reduction Roadmap, of which

we are a signatory.

With climate change firmly in the political and social spotlight, it is worth reminding ourselves that unless we fix the world’s food system we will not be able to bring about the reduction

in global warming we need to halt the damage to our planet. So we are delighted to pledge WRAP’s support to Ben Elliot’s bold rallying call to ‘Step up to the Plate’. We need to wake up to

the amount of food we waste as a nation and take action in our daily lives to stop throwing perfectly good food away.

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.

Currently around 43,000 tonnes of surplus food is redistributed from retailers and food manufacturers every year. It is estimated a further 100,000 tonnes of food - equating to 250 million

meals a year - is edible and readily available but goes uneaten. Instead, this food is currently sent away for generating energy from waste, anaerobic digestion, or animal feed.

The government is committed to supporting the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goal 2 to end hunger by 2030.

I _________ will step up to the plate to stop the food waste crisis by adopting the following commitments.

My organisation will set an ambitious food waste reduction target, report on progress and prioritise action. We will support collaboration with our partners, playing our part in helping the

UK deliver UN Sustainable Development Goal 12.3 target2, helping to reduce our impact on climate change. As a food business, my organisation will adopt the WRAP and IGD Food Waste Reduction

Roadmap.

My organisation will embrace a Food Conversation week of action in November 2019 by spearheading activities and engagement with citizens, including the younger generation, to highlight the

changes we can all make. In preparation for that week and beyond, we will work with WRAP to develop messaging, coordinate announcements, pilot and implement proven interventions to spark a

new movement to change the social norm around valuing food.

I will use my voice and profile to empower and encourage citizens, including the younger generation. I will work alongside Ben Elliot, the Government Food Surplus and Waste Champion, to

inspire action to reduce the amount of food being wasted, reaching a crescendo of action during the Food Conversation week and thereafter.

I will be a Food Value Champion at work and at home, buying only what I need and eating what I buy, wherever I am.