By Geraldine Peters
NTUC FairPrice launched a pilot programme under its Food Waste Framework called Great Taste Less Waste Selection at its hypermarket located in nex mall on 28 May 2015. The programme will see blemished fruits and vegetables cut up, repackaged and sold at marked down prices in efforts to minimise food wastage. The first of its kind in Singapore, the initiative have been implemented at all seven of FairPrice Xtra outlets.
“As a socially responsible retailer, FairPrice looks to lead by example by doing our part to reduce food waste… We also encourage our customers to join us in our efforts to reduce waste; and together help contribute towards a more sustainable environment,” said NTUC Fairprice CEO Seah Kian Peng.
The Food Waste Index
FairPrice rolled out a Food Waste Index in 2013 to measure annual food wastage at its outlets island-wide. The findings: in 2014, the supermarket’s food wastage was 11.9 kilogrammes per square metre or 2,200 tonnes.
A three-pronged Framework has since been set up to combat these figures, made up of Processes, Public Education and Partnership.
The Great Taste Less Waste Selection pilot falls under Processes and is an extension of the marked-down prices on seafood and chilled meats after being displayed for one day at all FairPrice stores.
FairPrice will also to educate the public that blemished produce is safe for consumption through its Public Education efforts.
In April this year, FairPrice partnered non-profit food distribution programme Food From The Heart (FFTH) which sees 55 FairPrice stores donating its unsold yet wholesome canned food to the community through FFTH. FairPrice plans to bring onboard by July this year all 126 outlets to donate directly to FFTH.
Source: NTUC This Week
