Forum Resource Efficiency

Fighting food waste together: how to open the potential of better packaging

Thursday, 22.03.2018, 10.00 am – 12.00 noon

Abstract:

Two billion people suffer from obesity and 800 million people live on the edge of starvation. This is the reality in a world where huge amounts of edible food are wasted, either in the supply chain up to the consumer or at home by that same consumer after the purchase. Packaging is the activity of temporarily integrating an external function and a product to enable the use (consumption) of the product (food).This session outlines the challenges faced by consumers, retailers, the food industry and the packaging suppliers together. How can we define the right conditions to stimulate packaging innovation in to the right direction, i.e. the limitation of food waste? Insights are shared based on a range of thought-provoking lectures and debates.

Programme: Thursday, 22.03.2018

10:00-10:25: Welcome and introduction

  • Unpacking some inconvenient truths in food packaging
  • Gauging the double burden of malnutrition: the WHO Policy Brief
  • From product shelf life to consumable product life: how can packaging help?
  • Starting points for fighting food waste via better packaging
    Michael Nieuwesteeg, Managing Director NVC Netherlands Packaging Centre

10:25-10:50: Responsible food for responsive consumers: the future of the food industry

  • Are we selling to our customers what we would serve our own kids at home?
  • Balancing revenue growth and responsible packaging
    Michele Amigoni, Technical Development Director Packaging Design & Standards, Barilla Group

10:50-11:15: International research: insights from the REFRESH project

  • Europe and China: take-aways from the REFRESH research programme on food waste prevention
    Toine Timmermans, project manager REFRESH and Programme manager sustainable food chains Wageningen University and Research

11:15-11:40: A material perspective: metal packaging

  • The relation between packaging material and the food it contains
    Alexis Van Maercke, Secretary General APEAL

11:40-12:00: Plenary debate with speakers and participants

  •  What did we learn together today?
  •  What to do next together tomorrow?
    co-moderated by Marco Sachet, Managing Director Italian Institute of Packaging
    Michael Nieuwesteeg, Managing Director NVC Netherlands Packaging Centre        

12:00: Conclusion