PM Orban: The International Day of Awareness of Food Loss and Waste challenges us to find solutions

The International Day of Awareness of Food Loss and Waste signals an abnormal aspect in the way a significant number of people regard food but also urges us to find solutions to restore balance, Prime Minister Ludovic Orban said on Tuesday.

The International Day of Awareness of Food Loss and Waste is marked on September 29, according to a decision made by the United Nations General Assembly last year.

"Half a century ago and even less, the possibility of a global food waste alert would probably have seemed bizarre to absurd. But things are changing fast, and today the world is finding that food is becoming garbage in many developed countries, while in poor or conflict-ridden areas of the globe entire populations are threatened by famine," Orban said in a message on the occasion.

In his opinion, by marking such a day, some individual behaviours can change.

"Of course, states will remain concerned about the safety of their citizens in terms of access to food - even in the form of abundance, in the rich ones. Of course, trade in food will not diminish. However, some individual behaviours can be changed, in the sense of not making purchases that exceed the consumption capacity, and alternatives can be created to throw away food that is about to expire, with the involvement of institutions, companies and society," the Prime Minister explained.

He recalled that Romania is among the European countries that have already adopted a legislative framework designed to reduce food waste, and the concept of food banks has emerged on the continent, through the efforts of people and entities interested in reducing waste, while supporting instead those in need and recovering thus the food surplus, which is donated to charities that support disadvantaged people, both locally and cross-border.

Prime Minister Ludovic Orban has called for moderate consumption behaviour so as to minimize the amount of food that is wasted.