Western Brand partners with Tesco to tackle food waste

ONE of Mayo’s largest fresh food suppliers, Western Brand, has committed to tackle food waste as part of a global movement aligned to the UN's Sustainable Development Goal 12.3, to help halve food waste, from farm to fork, by 2030.

Western Brand Group, based in Ballyhaunis for more than 60 years, is the largest family owned chicken producer on the island of Ireland.

The Tesco led initiative will see 12 of Ireland’s leading fresh food suppliers publicly targeting, measuring and acting to tackle the issue of food waste at their manufacturing sites and to working collaboratively to adopt the UN’s goal.

Key to this will be to measure and publicly publish details of their food waste for the first time in 2020.

At a global level, Western Brand will join other Irish Tesco own-label suppliers who previously signed up to this commitment, including Hilton (UK and ROI), Kepak, Kerry, Greencore and Ornua. Globally, Unilever UK and ROI has also become one of 11 branded suppliers to also join up to this leading commitment for the first time.

Tesco, by diverting its surplus food from going to waste working in partnership with FoodCloud since 2014, has saved 12 million kilograms of carbon emissions from being produced through the transport and processing of this food as waste. This saving is equivalent to the CO2 emissions from the consumption of over 5.4 million litres of petrol.

Welcoming the initiative as he attends the 2019 United Nations Climate Action Summit in New York, Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment Richard Bruton said: “A key part of the government’s Climate Action Plan is tackling food waste and it is an area in which business can really make a tangible, measurable change. Tesco have been pioneering in working to measure, manage and reduce their food waste. This move will have a significant impact, not just in terms of reducing food waste, but in helping Ireland to reach our carbon reduction targets.”

 

* Pictured Kari Daniels, CEO, and Joe Manning, Commercial Director, Tesco Ireland, alongside CEOs/representatives of 12 of Ireland’s largest fresh food suppliers who have committed to tackle food waste. Representatives include ABP, Aryzta, Ballymaguire Foods, Country Crest, Hilton, Keelings, Manor Farm, O’Brien Fine Foods, Panelto, Stapleton’s, Total Produce and Western Brand.