The board of the Consumer Goods Forum, which includes 400 of the biggest goods companies in 70 countries, used Climate Week to call on foodmakers and retailers to standardize the “Sell by,” “Use by” and “Best before” labels that confuse consumers and contribute to food waste. The industry “call to action” dovetails with a UN goal of reducing food waste by 50 percent by 2030.
The Consumer Goods Forum encouraged standardization of date labels worldwide by 2020 under the rubric of only one label at a time; using a “Use by” label for perishable foods and a “Best if used by” label for nonperishable, with wording tailored to regional preferences; and consumer education about what the labels mean. Campaigns already are underway in the U.S., Britain and Japan; the forum’s announcement expands the drive to the rest of the world.
Dave Lewis, chief executive of the giant British retailer Tesco, said his company’s research showed that simplified labels reduce food waste by retailers and consumers. “Streamlining date labels worldwide by 2020 could be game-changing in the fight against global food waste,” said Lewis, who chairs Champions 12.3. The group supports the UN’s Sustainable Development Goal 12.3, which would halve global food waste. The Champions group also released a report on global progress toward the food-waste goal.