Waste Quantification Solutions to Limit Environmental Stress

WASTELESS (2023-2025) aims to develop tools and recommendations for measuring and monitoring food losses and waste (FLW) which will ultimately contribute to its reduction by at least 20% annually. The main objective of the project is to develop tools to measure FLW in critical and less-known food supply chains and propose ways of quantifying the data. At the same time, it will develop an innovative set of decision-support tools for all those working along the food chain across the EU, to enable reduction and re-use of food waste in the long term. WASTELESS will carry out five case studies to understand utilisation and role/contribution of specific food groups such as fruits and vegetables, fruit juices, processed meat, dairy products and cereals in the FLW.

Project Details
  • Call: HORIZON-CL6-2022-FARM2FORK-01
  • Project number: 101084222
  • Project duration: 3 years. Starting date: 1 January 2023. End date: 31 December 2025.
  • Project Coordinator: Universidade de Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro (UTAD)
  • Participants: 29 organisations from 14 countries
  • Total budget: 5 458 233 EUR
  • Target groups: food service stakeholders, food industries, retail, households, selected supply chains
New tools for circular food systems

The EU’s transition to a circular economy and more resource efficiency is driven by innovation. This can be seen in the food industry, where there is a shift from linear to circular sustainability. In this context, the EU-funded WASTELESS project will develop and test a mix of innovative tools and methodologies for measurement and monitoring of food loss and waste. The project will follow a bottom-up approach. It will start by defining a harmonised methodological framework. It will then establish the standards for the testing activities, the evaluation of the quality and integrability of the data produced in other frameworks. Lastly, it will recommend sustainable policies and business strategies. The findings will be used to develop a decision support toolbox.

Project objectives
  • Develop and test a mix of innovative tools and methodologies for Food Loss and Waste (FLW) measurement and monitoring.
  • Recommend a harmonised methodological Framework for FLW quantification.
  • Develop a decision support systemic Toolbox targeting all food value chain stakeholders.