The Ministry of Agriculture, WFP and FAO launch a food waste management enabler initiative

The project will serve as a coordination platform gathering all national initiatives under one umbrella institutionalized under the Ministry of Agriculture and providing tools to maximize the efficiency, effectiveness, and sustainability of food waste management efforts in Jordan across various levels.

During the launch event, the Minister of Agriculture and Head of the National Committee for Food Security, H.E. Eng. Khalid Hnaifat, met with local initiatives that have been working on food waste management where his excellency emphasized the importance of preventing food waste, considering the limited resources in Jordan. He highlighted that wasted food in the country could feed 1.5 million people for an entire year.

“Addressing food waste through multiple interventions is crucial for tackling food security challenges and aligns with the objectives outlined in the National Food Security Strategy,” said Laurene Goublet, WFP Deputy Country Director in Jordan. “Through this project, we aim to empower local initiatives and contribute to the country’s progress towards achieving Sustainable Development Goal 2: Zero Hunger.”

On his part, FAO Representative in Jordan, Nabil Assaf, stated: “Prioritizing the reduction of food loss and waste is critical for the transition to sustainable agrifood systems that improve the efficient use of natural resources, lessen their impact on the planet and ensure food security and nutrition.” Assaf also pointed out the importance of integration in addressing the issue of waste and food loss, and that the cost of this phenomenon exceeds the value of food and depletes the limited natural resources in Jordan.

This intervention is part of the broader No Food Waste Initiative launched by the Ministry of Agriculture in November 2022. Recently, the Ministry, in partnership with WFP and FAO, initiated the first formative research focusing on consumption practices that contribute to food waste. This research is a step towards developing a nationwide campaign to raise public awareness about economic and environmental consequences of food waste and encourage actions to reduce it.