Private Sector Progress
As detailed in previous progress reports, the private sector as a whole is more advanced in food loss and waste reduction efforts than national governments, especially when it comes to measurement and action. Table 1 shows a sample, non-exhaustive list of companies that have publicly reported significant reductions in food loss and waste to date, compared with their baselines.
Progress Update
10x20x30 is an existing initiative where at least 10 of the world’s largest food retailers each engage 20 of their priority suppliers to take a “Target, Measure, Act” approach to collaboratively halve their food waste by 2030. The logic is one of leveraging supply chain power, in which the existing retailer-supplier relationship is used. Since 2019, WRI has mobilized 13 major food retailers and food providers and a cohort of over 200 food suppliers through this initiative, with early adopters demonstrating significant reductions in FLFW.
Of the 248 suppliers and retailers participating in 10x20x30, many have made significant progress in addressing food loss and waste throughout their operations. Some key metrics of progress within the initiative include:
- 74% of 10x20x30 companies have set a public food loss and waste baseline against which they can measure their progress.
- 54% of 10x20x30 companies have measured and publicly reported multiple years of food loss and waste data.
- The average reduction in food loss and waste among 10x20x30 companies who are reporting their food loss and waste data publicly is 15.4%, although as Table 1 shows, several companies are publicly reporting higher levels of reductions.
Although this progress is inspiring, more public reporting is needed to truly track progress (Box 3), and companies need to be going further with their food loss and waste reduction efforts. However, there are many examples of strong action from the private sector to address food loss and waste. Below are some new initiatives and efforts launched by 10x20x30 partners within the past year.
TABLE 1. Company-level reductions in food loss and waste exceeding 20 percent
| Company | % Food Loss and Waste Reduction Achieved |
|---|---|
| Ingka Group (IKEA) | 54% |
| Kellanova | 42% |
| Fresh Del Monte | 41% |
| Ahold Delhaize | 37% |
| Cargill | 35% |
| Pick N Pay | 31% |
| Danone North America | 30% |
| Kroger | 26% |
| Ajinomoto Foods | 23% |
Notes: This list is non-exhaustive. Percentages reflect a reduction of food loss or wasted compared to total food handled by the business.
Box 3. The Importance of Public Reporting
Most companies do not currently report their food loss and waste figures publicly. Although 74% of 10x20x30 companies have reported at least one year of data, this is high above the industry average. For example, when assessing 350 of the world’s most prominent food and agriculture companies, the World Benchmarking Alliance found that just ~15% of those companies reported food loss and waste data publicly.
And yet, without public reporting, it is impossible to understand how well companies are progressing toward reducing food loss and waste within their operations and achieving SDG 12.3. It is also impossible to fully quantify the benefits to the economy, the meals saved, or the greenhouse gas emissions avoided by reducing that loss and waste. Public reporting is also necessary for holding companies accountable to their ESG commitments, and for acknowledging those who have demonstrated leadership in their efforts.
No national government has yet required businesses to fully and publicly report their operational food loss and waste. The United Kingdom’s Department for Environment, Food, and Rural Affairs had announced in 2018 plans to require mandatory food loss and waste reporting, but last year these plans were delayed until the end of 2026 at the earliest.
Case Examples
Ahold Delhaize has achieved a 37% reduction in food waste in its own operations, and has implemented numerous measures to address in-store food waste as well as consumer food waste through its brands:
- Albert Heijn, based in the Netherlands, uses new AI-powered scanners to determine strawberry shelf life. The technology has saved at least 70,000 kg of strawberries from food waste, and the company is exploring its application to other fruits. The stores also use electronic price tags that allow an algorithm to automatically mark down food approaching its sell-by date, thus minimizing perishable products remaining unsold.
- AB Vassilopolous, based in Greece, has implemented nine public awareness campaigns for its customers, each of which is estimated to have reached 2 million users. Campaigns involved asking customers to consider if they needed everything in their basket, so as to avoid waste. Additionally, within the last two years, more than 10 operational waste reduction measures have been implemented or are planned, from automated store ordering to training employees.
- Delhaize, based in (Belgium), and start-up Wastech launched the “From Waste to Feed” project, an innovative system that, for the first time, uses live larvae to process food surpluses. Unsold fruit and vegetables from the supermarket are put to good use, because the larvae that eat the surplus food are then processed into protein as a supplement for animal feed
Ajinomoto Foods, a Japanese food manufacturer, has achieved a 23% reduction in food waste in its own operations through activities such as improving manufacturing processes, refining demand forecasting, and extending “best-before” time periods on its packaging. In March of 2024, they also released an advertisement highlighting national statistics of food waste in Japan and featuring a monster comprised of food waste named “Foodlosslla” rampaging through the streets of Tokyo. As of the time of publication, this advertisement has reached nearly 2.6 million views online.
Bel Group, a dairy company based in France, has addressed food loss and waste throughout its operations. Activities include more regular milk collection from farms to reduce spoilage, valorization of coproducts for use in new recipes, and development of single-size portions to reduce leftover waste at home and in catering. In September 2023, Bel Group Canada has also committed to a goal of zero destruction of finished products by 2030.
Danone has reduced food waste in its global operations by 19.8% compared to a 2020 baseline, and Danone North America has achieved a 30% reduction to date. Danone North America has seen reductions in operational food waste in part due to the Spoiler Alert sales platform, where foods close to expiration are matched with appropriate buyers. Since partnering with Spoiler Alert, Danone has seen a 50% increase in the sell-through rate of its excess product.
Mondelez, a multinational food manufacturer, has launched several related initiatives to reduce food loss and waste at the consumer level. One initiative addressed uncertainty around best-before dates by printing the "Often Good After" logo on packaging. Social media videos in Germany encouraged consumers to look, smell, and taste products before discarding them. And in Sweden, surplus products were donated to Matmissionen Supermarkets, where they were sold at reduced prices to economically vulnerable consumers.
Pick N Pay, a South Africa-based retailer, has reduced food waste within its operations by 31% over the past five years. Pick N Pay has implemented improved forecasting, invested in shelf-life extension technologies, and improved employee training around cold storage facilities.
Unilever, a global food manufacturer encourages individual facilities to develop innovative solutions within their own factories, which then are communicated across the company. For example, in Heilbronn, Germany, the development of a Rework machine by the Knorr team reduced food waste by reprocessing unused packaged food, saving 60 tons of that food in just six months. Similarly, in Poznan, Poland, the Hellmann’s team optimized their decanting process, reducing mayonnaise waste by up to 200 tons annually. In Corlu, Turkey, the ice cream factory team cut food waste by 30% through daily waste tracking and targeted equipment audits, highlighting the power of collaboration in driving efficiency and sustainability.
Photo by ICRISAT/Flickr
10x20kx30
In 2024, Champions 12.3 launched the 10x20kx30 initiative. 10x20kx30 is a new initiative where 10 major farmgate-facing agribusinesses will each engage at least 20,000 (20k) of their supply base of small-scale farmers (less than 2 hectares) to follow the “Target, Measure, Act” approach to reducing food losses by 50% by 2030. Based on the success of the 10x20x30 approach to addressing food waste, the logic of this strategy is that farmgate-facing agribusinesses have a fortuitous ability to engage small-scale farmers via existing out-grower programs.
10x20kx30 has the potential to deliver significant impacts across a part of the supply chain which is very challenging to reach. We are leveraging expertise from companies already using this model and who have demonstrated it works. Small-scale farmers represent 84% of all farms and are responsible for 32% of world food production. Tackling on-farm losses amongst small-scale farmers will deliver both GHG emission reductions and critical economic and developmental co-benefits in low- and medium-income countries.