Waste2Worth

Food waste is a significant problem in the European Union (EU) with ~88 million tons of food wasted annually. The issue not only has environmental & economic consequences, but food waste is a major contributor to food insecurity in the EU. Food SMEs are
essential players in the food sector, contributing significantly to the economy & creating employment opportunities. However, food SMEs face various challenges, including the issue of food waste, which affects their bottom line and contributes to environmental degradation. The EU has set a target to reduce food waste by 30% by 2025. This is in line with the UN Sustainable Development Goal 12.3, which aims to half per capita global food waste at the retail & consumer levels, and reduce food losses along production and supply chains, by 2030. WASTE2WORTH (W2W) is a VET initiative that will provide skills and capacity building in the repurposing of food waste streams in the FIGHT AGAINST CLIMATE CHANGE & aid in the development of circular & bioeconomies across Europe.
It will provide tailored support, in line with GREEN COMP to VET training bodies, food SMEs, primary food producers, bioeconomy/regional/agricultural development agencies to increase AWARENESS of the impact of food waste on the environment & economy.
By creating awareness and ultimately a mapping of avoidable waste by food SMEs, we will encourage INNOVATIVE & CRITICAL THINKING into how SMEs by collaborating in a circular way in the wider community, can better use these ‘wastes’ and simultaneously
create worth. Be it to create new food products, feed products, biomass for energy production etc. having information is power and will lead to the valorisation of what was once deemed waste turning them into capital resources for other businesses & communities.
We will CONTRIBUTE TO INNOVATION IN VET by providing tools to foster the adoption of sustainable practices in the food SME sector to use their networks & reach within the community to explore waste streams. Not only does valorising waste create a solution for
environmental & social problems it gives communities common values and EMPOWERS them via information to become more economically SUSTAINABLE & RESILIENT for the future.