Never has the international and European outcry to combat food waste been louder. Malta is no exception. When we throw away our surplus food as a result of purchasing or cooking too much, we rarely pause to think of the significance and repercussions of our actions and the negative impacts food waste has on the environment.

Food waste accounts for approximately half of Malta’s household waste. Approximately 22 per cent of the food we purchase ends up being wasted – that’s €1 out of every €5 spent. As consumers, we have a determining role to play and our actions can reshape the food waste landscape. It’s really a win-win situation: you produce less and you save more.

We need to become smarter shoppers by thinking about what we are buying, when it will be consumed and how to utilise it to the maximum. As from next week, people from the ‘Don’t Waste Waste’ national awareness campaign will be present in leading supermarkets to offer tips and advice on how to shop wisely and how to effectively implement habits that help reduce food waste and spend less money.

A number of leading supermarkets among them Pavi, Pama, Park Towers, Scotts, Smart and Arkadia in Victoria, are on board. These waste respresentatives will also be handing out useful giveaways.

Further tips on how to reduce food waste can be found on http://www.dontwastewaste.gov.mt/.