What is Food Waste?
Food waste refers to food that completes the food safety supply chain up to a final product, of good quality and fit for consumption, but still doesn’t get consumed because it is discarded, whether or not after it is left to spoil or expire. Food waste typically (but not exclusively) takes place at retail and consumption stages in the food supply chain.
Food loss and waste is a recognised global issue which is also affecting South Africa. An estimated 10.3 million tonnes of food and beverages is wasted per year in South Africa (about a third of the food available), yet 9.34 million people in South Africa suffer from acute food insecurity and almost 20% of South African households have inadequate access to food. Food and beverage waste also has a significant impact on the environment due to methane gas produced when food spoils, and in addition, resources such as water, labour and energy are wasted and biodiversity is impacted.
Where to start?
It can be daunting to start a journey to a more sustainable method of food production. We have taken the time to develop an easy-to-follow process that will guide you through the process and give you technical support every step of the way.
- Food Waste Reduction Questionnaire
- Site Visit/Assessment
- Customer-specific offer (based on questionnaire and site visit outcome)
- Training Offerings
- Shelflife extension studies based on product matrix
- Review practices
- Problem Solving
- Contamination identification
- Sampling plan
Our approach to Food Waste Reduction:
Why Mérieux NutriSciences?
At Mérieux NutriSciences, supporting the food sector in building more sustainable food systems is part of our DNA: for decades, Mérieux NutriSciences has brought its expertise in Food science to work toward safer & more qualitative food. Today, we leverage our experience and knowledge to help food companies make their business more sustainable at every stage of their value chain.
