StopWaste has joined one of the largest public-private partnerships in the world, led by the Pacific Coast Collaborative, to reduce and prevent wasted food by 50 percent by 2030. Together with ReFED, World Wildlife Fund (WWF), and WRAP, the PCC is calling on food retailers and their supply chain partners and food manufacturers to join the West Coast Voluntary Agreement to Reduce Wasted Food.

By reducing wasted food, the partnership targets one of the largest contributors of greenhouse gas emissions, responsible for 8 percent of GHG emissions globally, and will contribute to conserving water and land resources. Food that is grown and never eaten consumes an enormous amount of natural resources – 21 percent of all freshwater, 18 percent of cropland, 19 percent of all fertilizer, and 21 percent of landfill volume. 

Another primary aim of the partnership is to address food insecurity. Approximately 40 percent of edible food in the U.S. ends up in landfills, never reaching a plate, despite the fact that one out of five residents (2/3 are children and seniors) faces food insecurity in Alameda County alone. The issue has become more acute in the wake of COVID-19. In Alameda County, regional food recovery organizations are reporting three-fold increases in need, and are struggling to meet higher demand.

Opportunities for food waste reduction include preventing and recovering surplus food, two upstream priority areas for StopWaste, which is actively working with food generators and rescue organizations and partners across the County to reduce and rescue edible food before it goes to waste and instead deliver it to families who need it.

The PCC is a partnership between British Columbia, Washington, Oregon, California, and the cities of Oakland, San Francisco, Vancouver, Seattle, Portland, and Los Angeles, who are working together to build the low-carbon economy of the future. 

You can read the full press release here.