17 April 2023, Ankara – The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), key national stakeholders and partner organizations of the three-year project “Reduction of Food Loss and Waste in Central Asia, Azerbaijan and Türkiye” have come together to conclude the project, take stock of its milestones, and set a vision for more sustainable and resilient national food systems in line with the countries’ commitment to achieve SDG 12.3. 

The project provided support to the Republic of Azerbaijan, Kyrgyz Republic, the Republic of Tajikistan, the Republic of Türkiye, Turkmenistan and the Republic of Uzbekistan in developing national strategies and action plans for preventing and reducing food loss and waste at the individual, community and national levels. To this end, FAO, in close collaboration with the national governments and food business operators, analysed country-specific context, including existing policy and legislative frameworks, and collected data causes and impacts of food loss and waste in the participating countries. These findings informed the strategies’ formulation, outlining comprehensive programmes for the prevention and reduction of food loss and waste. Specific operational actions proposed in these strategies are being aligned with national priorities and relevant initiatives in the areas of food loss and waste prevention and food and agriculture development more generally.

To prepare the countries for implementation of the strategies, the project aimed to improve the capacities of relevant stakeholders and food value chain actors, including by assessing food loss and waste and good practices to prevent and reduce wastage. 

The national campaign “Save Your Food”, launched by FAO and the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry of Türkiye, has produced notable results in reducing food loss and waste in the country. Specifically, Turkish households saved 664 million Turkish Lira per year by preventing and reducing food waste thanks to better planning of food shopping, meal portioning and reuse of surplus food. In addition, the number of people saving leftovers for later consumption increased from 45 percent to 55 percent. The campaign also helped to improve comprehension of the difference between “expiry” and “best before” dates by 20 percent, resulting in less safe-to-consume food being discarded past its “best before” date. Composting of food waste increased from 3 percent to 6 percent, and the campaign helped to break a Guinness World Record for the “most pledges made for not wasting food”, with 790 000 people taking the pledge on sofranasahipcik.com, in the field of environmental sustainability. The “Save Your Food” campaign is continuing to raise awareness and promote positive actions to reduce food loss and waste and strengthen sustainable practices in Türkiye. 

The opening speeches at the meeting were delivered by Fuat Kasımcan, Director-General of the EU and Foreign Affairs at the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry of Türkiye, and Viorel Gutu, Sub-Regional Coordinator for Central Asia and FAO Representative in Türkiye. 

Fuat Kasımcan stated that they were proud to be the donor of this project and were happy with its results. He continued, “Today might be the closure of this specific project but Türkiye and all the other beneficiary countries of this project will and should continue to prevent food loss and waste at all levels of the food chain.” Kasımcan also expressed the Ministry’s desire to share its knowledge and experience with all who desire to tackle this problem and affirmed that the Ministry will continue to cooperate with FAO on joint efforts to address the issue.

In his speech, Viorel Gutu noted that the project has contributed to global efforts to achieve the 2030 Agenda and the UN Sustainable Development Goals, in particular SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production). Gutu added, “I believe that the impacts of the project will reach far beyond the project implementation areas.” Gutu also thanked the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry for its generous support.

The meeting continued with the experts’ presentations on the project outcomes, and Ministry officials shared information about the results of the national “Save Your Food” campaign.

The results and success stories presented during the closing meeting aim to inspire multidisciplinary and solution-oriented collaborations among national and regional stakeholders, including public sector, private sector, and civil society actors, during the implementation of national action plans.

About FAO

The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) leads global efforts to end hunger. Established in 1945, FAO has more than 194 member states and operates in over 130 countries worldwide. Since 2006, the FAO Subregional Office for Central Asia, located in Ankara, has been providing technical assistance on agriculture, land and natural resources to seven countries: Türkiye, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.

About the FAO-Türkiye Partnership Programmes

The objectives of the FAO-Türkiye Partnership Programmes are to provide support to ensure food security, rural poverty reduction and sustainable forest management; combat desertification; and preserve ecosystems in Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Türkiye, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, and other countries of mutual interest. Established in 2007, the first phase of the FAO-Türkiye Partnership Programme on Food and Agriculture (FTPP) has benefited from trust fund contributions totalling USD 10 million, financed by the Government of Türkiye and represented by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry. During the first phase of the programme, 28 projects were implemented in 16 countries between 2009 and 2015. In 2014, Türkiye and FAO commenced the second phase of the FTPP along with the first phase of the FAO-Türkiye Forestry Partnership Programme (FTFP) with additional funding of USD 20 million, bringing Türkiye’s total contribution to USD 30 million.

About the Project

“Reduction of Food Loss and Waste Project in Central Asia, Azerbaijan, and Türkiye” was implemented by FAO under the framework of the FAO-Türkiye Partnership Programme on Food and Agriculture (FTPP II) and financed by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry of the Republic of Türkiye. Within the scope of the project, FAO assisted beneficiary countries, including Türkiye, in developing national strategies and action plans to reduce food loss and waste. 

About the “Save Your Food” campaign

Launched in May 2020, the national Save Your Food campaign intended to raise awareness about the detrimental impacts of food loss and waste, and to stimulate action along the food supply chain. The campaign was jointly implemented by FAO and the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry of Türkiye under the project Reduction of Food Loss and Waste in Azerbaijan, Central Asia and Türkiye (http://gidanikoru.com).

Links: 

Food loss and waste reduction campaign of FAO and Turkey takes off

FAO-Turkey Partnership Program launched a comprehensive project on food loss and waste reduction 

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