Meeting of the Parliament 15 December 2016
This has been an important and insightful debate with well-informed contributions from across the chamber. It is ironic that, as the festive season beckons, we have the almost Dickens-esque record that, while the poor faced food inequality and ill health, 4.2 million Christmas dinners were wasted in the UK in 2014, according to Unilever. In that same year, Scottish households generated an estimated 600,000 tonnes of food waste. The Waste and Resources Action Programme has estimated that every year about 270,000 tonnes of food from the food and drink industry could be redistributed to feed people, which would be enough for a staggering 650 million meals for people who are in need.
Tackling the vast scale of wasted food in our country is an economic, environmental and moral imperative. It is economic, because just a 5.7 per cent reduction in household waste between 2009 and 2014 saved £92 million; environmental, because food and drink production make up about 20 per cent of our carbon footprint; and moral, because so many countries round the world are reporting widespread starvation and many who live in our country are struggling to afford to eat.
It is surely time for a step change in Scotland’s food system. As we have heard, around the world, about a third of food is wasted. If that was reduced by only a quarter, there would be enough to feed everyone on the planet.
As we have heard from all the other speakers, to make headway in reducing food waste, a transformational change in food production is needed. To summarise the key points in the debate, we need individuals to change their attitudes to food use; we need large supermarkets to donate unsold food and, as Sainsbury’s does, to send zero waste to landfill; we need to cut down on food waste along the supply chain; and, as Elaine Smith said, we need to develop community and co-operative initiatives such as local composting schemes. I refer members to my registered interest as a Co-operative Party member. As we have heard from across the chamber, we also need to develop new technology such as smart fridges and food rescue apps.
The reduce, reuse and recycle mantra is vital to protecting our environment and our population from the challenges that are brought about by food waste. In my region—the Highlands and Islands—Lochaber Environmental Group works hard to raise awareness and educate people about ways in which they can help to reduce food waste, through sessions in schools, home visits and free interactive cooking demonstrations. At Westminster, my Labour colleague Kerry McCarthy MP introduced the Food Waste (Reduction) Bill in the House of Commons, through which she hoped to introduce stricter guidelines to cut waste in the supply chain. Her objective was to encourage redistribution of leftover food to charities that help people who are living in food poverty.
I do not have time to mention all the speakers in what has been an excellent debate, but I cannot resist mentioning Mr Chapman’s interesting comment that, if something in his house looks good, he eats it. I ask him to please not invite me to his Christmas dinner on 25 December.
Members: Aw.