As part of the fight against food waste, Luxembourg's Ministry of Agriculture, Viticulture and Rural Development has redistributed 1,745 litres of fresh milk to charities.
In Luxembourg, 118 kilograms of food are thrown away per year and per person, while almost half of this waste could be avoided. To limit this phenomenon, the ministry has been raising awareness, mobilising various players and getting actively involved in the fight against food waste.
On Wednesday 10 and Thursday 11 February 2021, the Agriculture Ministry redistributed 1,745 litres of fresh milk to the solidarity grocery stores "Cent Buttek" (500 litres) and "Spëndchen" / Red Cross / Caritas (535 litres), as well as to the non-profit association Stëmm vun der Strooss (710 litres).
Originally, these batches of fresh milk were produced before the announcement of the school closure last Thursday, specifically for the "Schoulmëllech" (school milk) programme and in unconventional formats that cannot be sold commercially. They were supposed to be distributed this week to primary and secondary schools and maisons relais, but with the latter closed, a redistribution plan was quickly put in place with the supplier Luxlait and the stakeholders in order to redistribute the batches before their expiry date.
Romain Schneider, Minister of Agriculture, Viticulture and Rural Development, welcomed the exemplary commitment of charitable associations. He recalled that the fight against food waste is one of the biggest challenges of the decades to come, adding: “It is therefore imperative to act, while having a responsible attitude towards our natural resources. By each making a small effort, we can all together successfully fight against food waste in order to achieve the objectives of the national waste and resource management plan, that is to say a reduction in 50% food waste until 2030”.
