FAO Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia

Food waste prevention and reduction in times of crisis

Hybrid Event, 11/11/2020

Time: 10:00 – 11:30 a.m. CET

The COVID-19 pandemic has brought to the forefront the fragility and weaknesses of our agrifood systems. It laid bare the disruptions of food production (harvest) and distribution with special focus on the prevention of food loss and waste.

Mitigating severe impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and the response measures will require collaborative and innovative approaches.

With little data available on the implications of COVID-19 on the agrifood system, the webinar will bring together experts from different sectors to share their first-hand experience and discuss solutions and practices to prevent and reduce food waste at different stages of the food value chain in this unprecedented situation.

In this regard, the webinar will focus on two areas of action to prevent and reduce food waste:
- Facilitation of access to food for food insecure and vulnerable groups;
- Development and adoption of innovative solutions to minimize critical food loss and waste.

Speakers

Robert van Otterdijk, Agro-industry Officer, FAO
Angela Frigo, Secretary General, European Food Banks Federation
Liliana Annovazzi-Jakab, Head, Agricultural Quality Standards Unit, United Nations Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE)
Liz Goodwin, Senior Fellow and Director, Food Loss and Waste, World Resources Institute

Panelists

Ellen Oetelmans, Program Manager of Amsterdam Impact, a City of Amsterdam initiative
Irina Kuzmina, Charity Programs Manager, X5 Retail Group, Russia
Balázs Cseh, President, Hungarian Food Bank Association