Use of plastic packaging is fuelling food waste in EU

A rise in plastic food packaging is failing to reduce Europe’s growing food waste problem, and in some cases may even be fuelling it, new research has revealed.

The study shows how annual per capita use of plastic packaging has grown simultaneously with levels of food waste since the 1950s to stand at 30kg and 173kg respectively.

The review of available evidence published by Friends of the Earth Europe and Zero Waste Europe, on behalf of the Rethink Plastic alliance, also found that big retailers are driving food and plastic packaging waste in Europe through practices such as food grading standards, and selling food in multipacks and small format packs. One study showed that chopping green beans to fit plastic packaging resulted in 30 per cent to 40 per cent of the beans being wasted.

Across the European Union, more than a third of all food sold is wrapped in plastic – the most widely used packaging material.

Meadhbh Bolger from Friends of the Earth Europe said: “The results are in: wrapping, bottling and packing food in plastic doesn’t systemically prevent food waste, and sometimes even causes it. It’s a red herring that’s causing terrible pollution of our land, sea and air.”