How can our Government facilitate the reduction of food waste Nastascha Harduth

Jacques Diouf is a Senegalese diplomat who was Director-General of the United Nations' Food and Agriculture Organization from January 1994 to 31 December 2011

South Africa wastes 9 to 10 million tons of food every year 747 take off weight is 333,400 kg (i.e. 333.4 tonnes). 9000000 tonns / 333.4 = 26994.60

THE cost OF Food WASTE Our food waste is equal to 30% of South Africa’s annual agriculture 62% of South Africa’s available water is used to irrigate crops Nearly 22% of this water is spent on food that ultimately is wasted Every ton of food waste is responsible for 4.5 tons of CO2 green house gas emission , thus 40.5 million tons of green house EVERY YEAR

THE cost OF Food WASTE The cost of food wastage in South Africa in 2012 was in the order of R61.5 billion per annum – today it will amount to R79.5 billion…with a “B”

SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC IMPACT OF FOOD INSECURITY According to the 2015 General Household Survey households vulnerable to hunger amounted to 11% in 2015 = approximately 7 million South Africans One in five children in the country go to school hungry

Social and economic impact of food insecurity According to UNICEF, malnutrition is linked to: a 7-month delay in starting school and between 22 and 45% reduction in lifetime earnings. We cannot expect children to feed their brains with knowledge and information in order to break out of the cycle of poverty while their bodies remain starving

NUTRITIOUS SURPLUS FOOD SHOULD BE USED TO FEED PEOPLE AND NOT WASTED The CSIR calculated in 2010 that R1,191.00 of food is consumed within a month by a middle income earner (and applying an inflation increase of 42.5% over 6 years from 2010 to 2016), therefore : FOR EVERY 5% OF WASTED FOOD THAT IS RECOVERED AN ADDITIONAL 195 000 PEOPLE CAN BE FED THREE TIMES A DAY, EVERYDAY FOR A YEAR

FOOD RECOVERY…IS IT POSSIBLE The South African Government recognises that certain organisations are dependent upon the generosity of the public To encourage that generosity our Government has provided a tax deduction for certain donations made by taxpayers A taxpayer making a bona fide donation in cash or of property in kind to a section 18A-approved PBO, is entitled to a tax deduction limited to the value of 10% of the donor taxpayer's taxable income In addition, donations by or to a PBO are exempt from donations tax in terms of section 56(1)(h) of the ITA BUT potential food donors’ STILL fear being sued

FOOD RECOVERY…IS IT POSSIBLE Section 61 of the Consumer Protection Act 68 of 2008 (CPA) provides for strict (no fault) liability across the supply chain if any harm is caused where that product was unsafe, had a product failure, defect or hazard This concern by donors is not a South African concern, but is reflected throughout the world. Internationally, there are laws which limit the liability of good faith donors of surplus food to NGOs in a responsible manner South Africa needs its own food donations legislation

The proposed legislation The proposed legislation should protect donors under the following circumstances: Farmers who allow gleaners to collect leftover crops from the fields; Donors of "apparently wholesome food", meaning food that has reached its "sell by" date, but not yet is "best before" or "use by" dates; Donors of food that has reached or exceeded its "best before" or "use by" dates, to a responsible NGO which can test the food to ensure that it is still fit for human consumption; and The donation of food that is unfit for human consumption for composting.

LET'S TACKLE THE PROBLEM TOGETHER But there are other considerations as well, which we will discuss today with: Prof. Suzan Oelofse - Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) Leani de Vries - World Wildlife Fund (WWF South Africa) Peter Skelton – The Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) Michael Lee – The Clorox Company