Jennifer Whitmore (Wicklow, Social Democrats)
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252. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government for an update on the priority actions that is, reporting, sector specific targets, development of stronger food separation rules, progress of food waste week organisation, uptake of a food waste charter and so on, in the National Food Waste Prevention Roadmap 2023-2025; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43155/25]

Alan Dillon (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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A number of priority actions set out in the National Food Waste Prevention Roadmap 2023-2025 have been delivered.

In June 2023, the EPA launched a revised Food Waste Charter calling on all businesses and State Agencies operating across the food supply chain to sign up and commit to reducing food waste. There are currently 79 Food Waste Charter members, representing over 69,000 employees across the food and drink supply chain.

New legislation was introduced in 2023 that requires every household in the State to be provided with a brown bin for food waste and light garden waste by their waste collector. This was carried out with a view to enable all households access to a waste collection service to segregate their waste, minimise the amount of waste that goes into landfill, and reuse waste through measures such as recycling, composting and anaerobic digestion, thereby making a positive contribution to our national recycling rates.

Stop Food Waste Day is an annual event that takes place on 1 March every year to highlight opportunities to prevent food waste. StopFoodWaste.ie, managed by the EPA, is a national campaign to reduce household food waste in Ireland. The focus of the day this year was to invite the public to download a ‘Stop Food Waste Day Pocket Guide’ to follow tips on reducing food waste and saving money.

National Food Waste Recycling Week is run by the Regional Waste Management Planning Offices. €1 million funding was allocated by the Department in 2022 and 2023 to fund food waste recycling awareness campaigns which included the provision of household food waste caddy packs. The aim was to encourage everyone to recycle food waste by raising awareness and providing practical tools to separate food waste. This year, National Food Waste Recycling Week took place from 1 to 8 June 2025 with a focus on reducing contamination in brown bins.

The outcome of the amendment to the Waste Framework Directive and the binding targets that will be implemented will further inform sector specific targets across the food supply chain.

Jennifer Whitmore (Wicklow, Social Democrats)
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253. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government for an update on the development of a National Food Waste Prevention Roadmap post-2025; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43156/25]

Alan Dillon (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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Work on the next iteration of the National Food Waste Prevention Roadmap will commence this year to ensure actions are relevant and appropriate so that Ireland is on the right path to deliver on its food waste reduction obligations.

The Department leads on the development of the National Food Waste Prevention Roadmap and in the coordination and review of its implementation. The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine is the lead Government Department on UN SDG 12.3. Both Departments are committed to working closely together to pursue ambitious food loss and food waste reductions.

The preparation of the next iteration of the National Food Waste Prevention Roadmap will involve consultation with key stakeholders and will be prepared on a statutory basis following publication of the second Whole of Government Circular Economy Strategy.

The binding food waste reduction targets in relation to the amendments to the Waste Framework Directive will play an important role in shaping the future targeted actions within the next iteration of the Roadmap.

Jennifer Whitmore (Wicklow, Social Democrats)
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254. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government if he will consider introducing mandatory food waste reporting for businesses in the industry; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43157/25]

Alan Dillon (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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The National Food Waste Prevention Roadmap 2023-2025 contains an action that commits to the review of the effectiveness of the voluntary approach to food waste measurement and reporting to determine if there is a need to set mandatory requirements for measurement and reporting.

The effectiveness of this voluntary approach to food waste measurement and reporting, and the revised Food Waste Charter, in terms of measurement and reporting of food waste by key sectors, will be monitored as part of the Roadmap review. This will determine if there is a need to set mandatory requirements in relation to food waste measurement and reporting.

In February this year, an agreement was reached on amending the Waste Framework Directive to further reduce food waste by 2030 with new targets on processing and manufacturing waste in addition to per capita reductions in waste from retail, restaurants, food services and households.

The Department will continue to progress the implementation of the priority actions included in the National Food Waste Prevention Roadmap 2023-2025. The outcome of the process regarding proposed legally binding food waste reduction targets to be achieved by Member States by 2030 will be particularly important in informing further focused and targeted actions on food waste prevention.

Jennifer Whitmore (Wicklow, Social Democrats)
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255. To ask the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government if he will publish an review of the National Food Waste Prevention Roadmap 2023-2025 this year; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [43158/25]

Alan Dillon (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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Ireland is committed to reducing food waste by 50% by 2030 in line with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. The National Food Waste Prevention Roadmap 2023- 2025, published in November 2022, sets out a number of priority actions to focus on food waste prevention, across key sectors in the food supply chain, together in a coherent manner.

A number of priority actions set out in the National Food Waste Prevention Roadmap 2023- 2025 have been delivered or are in progress. The review of the Roadmap for 2023 has been published and the 2024 review is currently in progress.

Some of the key priority actions delivered for the year 2024 include:

• Engagement in the EU process leading up to a provisional agreement on amendments to EU waste legislation related to the introduction of binding food waste reduction targets by 2030.
• National Food waste awareness activities such as National Stop Food Waste Day and a National Food Waste Recycling Week.
• Updated Green Public Procurement policy that includes a focus on food waste prevention.
• The commencement of the Food Circle Project, a two-year grant agreement that was established by the Department with FoodCloud in August 2024. Supported by the Circular Economy Fund, the main purpose of the project is to promote, and identify further actions to support, surplus food donation and redistribution in Ireland, therefore reducing food waste.