Reducing Food Waste
In the OIC Member Countries
COMCEC
Senegal, or a poor understanding ofmetrics e.g. kgs and waste generated overtime. It is therefore
important to interpret the data with caution, and see it as indicative of practices.
It was also not possible to derive the average volumes generated for the total 57 OIC Member
Countries using the data gathered. The main reason being that the data gathered, whilst an
excellent start, is based on only 7 countries. However, this data does provide very useful and
indicative insights from which to draw conclusions, propose policy recommendations and to
illustrate the diversity, causes and behaviors leading to food waste among householders and the
food service sectors in member states.
8 .1 .1 . M a in causes o f fo o d w a s te
Within households, the research suggests the main causes for food waste were related to
concerns about food poisoning or food reaching its expiry date, and cooking or serving too much
food. Whilst many households noted they do use shopping lists and plan meals in advance, there
was still a tendency to over-purchase, and this was sometimes down to the influence of
promotions.
For the food service sector, the reasons indicated were too much food being prepared (e.g.
unsure of customer numbers), food reaching its expiry date, customers ordering too much food,
and the stigma associated with taking home leftovers. Many felt their customers’ behavior was
the biggest driver for food waste, with a number referencing children’s eating habits as a cause.
Buffets as a serving option created the most food waste for all respondents.
8 .1 .2 . M e a s u re s a n d in itia t iv e s to re d u c e fo o d w a s te
This study is not the first, it is a consolidation and investigation of studies that have been done
in and on OIC Member Countries in the preceding years. It builds on initiatives and research, and
identifies those that stand out as examples of good practice - both internationally, and within
the member countries - and proposes how these opportunities can either be cascaded and
implemented more widely through the member countries. In addition, the research identified
gaps, or barriers to implementation e.g. stigma associated with taking home leftovers, state
subsidies for bread, or lack of waste management infrastructure - and provided policy
recommendations to overcome these issues.
There are numerous international initiatives Member Countries can collaborate with and draw
on for inspiration and guidance - such as ‘Champion 12.3’, UNEP’s ‘Think.Eat.Save’, WRAP’s
‘Love Food Hate Waste’ campaign and the FAO’s ‘Save Food’. The same applies for country-
specific or regionalized initiatives, such as the Arab Food Bank Regional Network (FBRN),
Qatar’s ‘National Dietary Guidelines’, or Turkey’s bread waste campaign.
The role of COMCEC would be to recognize, build on and learn from these initiatives to
consolidate, share good practice and develop policies which are unique and applicable to its
members.
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