Business case

Providing various support services for businesses and governments, such as research, testing, certification and consulting services, cleaning and maintenance services, security and protection services, legal, accounting and bookkeeping services, information management, data processing, and business process outsourcing services

Research & Commercial Services

Producing basic and specialty chemicals, inks, agricultural chemical such as fertilisers and pesticides, plastics including packaging, and rubber

Chemical and Plastic

Provide guidance or professional training to educate employees to use circular economy principles

Training on the circular economy

Derive chemicals and fuels from organic waste matter, for example, wasted fats, grease and oils can be used for biodiesel production. Food waste such as corn starch and sugar cane can be used for PLA (Polylactic Acid) to replace plastic packaging, liquid fats and solid meat products can be used as raw materials in the rendering industry (animal food, cosmetics, soap, etc.).


Derive fuel and materials

Other

Industries

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The principles of a circular economy concern designing out waste, regenerating ecosystems and keeping items in use. Decoupling the economy from material flows—improving the rate of resource productivity faster than the economic growth rate—is also a consistent guide. By evolving with the growing number of applications of circular economy principles, and consolidating these strategies across thematic areas, Circle Economy’s Key Elements Framework (KE) renders the elements of the circular economy salient and serves as a basis to derive contextual strategies and interventions. 


The Framework consists of:
- Core Elements: Activities directly handling product or material flows; and uniquely,
- Enabling Elements: those that remove obstacles for core actors.


Key elements of the circular economy

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Circle Economy's framework of strategies and activities that define the circular economy

Urban Opportunities

  
Tips & Hints
Frequently Asked Questions
Resources
Send Us Your Ideas
 Any city worth its weight in aluminum cans or two by fours has a recycling program, and Black Rock City is no exception. For a decade now, recycling has been a part of life on the playa; even though our mantra has always been “Pack it in, Pack it out” because “There is no garbage or recycling in Black Rock City.” In truth, that mantra means we must take responsibility for our own trash, including recycling — and some resources do exist to help participants keep their recyclables out of the landfill.
Burning Man, for many people, has become not so much the way they spend their lives for one week out of the year, but rather a way of thinking and acting all year round. The process of leaving no trace should be started before one even leaves their home for the desert, and should in fact carry over into one’s daily life, because the entire planet on which we live deserves to be treated with the same sense of reverence as the playa.
Landfills across the world are quickly filling up and more and more of our precious land is being taken to house the millions of tons of trash that our race accumulates every year. Studies have shown that 25-50% of this refuse is material that need not be filling up these landfills, as it is recyclable. Recycling is cheap and easy, and the benefits are immeasurable. By taking the time to minimize the amount of material that is brought onto the playa (see Trash Minimization), one can minimize the possibility of accidentally having something hit the ground. Additionally, citizens of Black Rock City are encouraged to separate and recycle their waste and to dispose of the trash and recyclable materials appropriately. Tips and Hints

 Figure out the who, what, where and how before you get on the playa.
 Bring appropriate containers for all different kinds of recyclables. Burlap bags are great for collecting aluminum cans, glass and plastic bottles, since they let air through.
 Label your separate containers boldly so that, even in the dark, your fellow camp mates can easily find the burlap bag for the aluminum beer cans.
 Set up a convenient location for your separation station. Call it something creative like that and people with talk about it and use it. Try to stick with one central location rather than multiple spots. This helps reinforce the importance of reducing how much trash we create in the first place.
 Manage your separation station daily. Make sure things are being properly separated. Aluminum — Steel — Glass — Plastic — Paper/Cardboard — Organics – and finally trash.
 Take all of your aluminum cans to Recycle Camp. There you can help them crush and bag the cans. Then the cans will be delivered to Gerlach where the School organizes to get the cans recycled and they get to keep the deposit money.
 Instead of burning all of your leftover, used-for-a-week, perfectly good wood, why not recycle it?  Burners without Borders will be back in force this year once again recycling all usable lumber and building materials, and they need your help!
Starting Sunday, they will have recycling stations set up near 3, 6, and 9 on the Esplanade. They expect to be open from 10am-9pm, both Sunday and Monday. There you can drop off your usable lumber (full size pieces of 2 x 4, 4 x 4, and plywood only, please; no scraps), as well as certain building materials (pipes, conduit, wiring, tools, and other re-useful non-liquid hardware items). Got some time to kill after the Burn? Help them organize, clean & sort donations!
You can participate even before the event: make sure to design your camp and art so that it can be easily recycled. They’ll be looking for full lengths of 2 x 4, 4 x 4, and full sheets of plywood, so before you lop off that little end piece, ask yourself if you really need to? And when you’re building, use screws instead of nails — they hold better, go in easier, and also make structures easier to disassemble.
 There are several convenient locations throughout the region to responsibly dispose of all of your recyclables, trash, and gray water, and many of them are open 24 hours. Find them here in the Survival Guide.

For More Information on these and other tips:
Contact Blue of Recycle Camp at recycle@burningman.com
and Burners without Borders at www.burnerswithoutborders.org

Frequently Asked Questions

Is there recycling in Black Rock City?
The answer is no and yes. There is no recycling service in Black Rock City, just as there is no garbage service. No recycling stations, no trash cans. We ask our participants to “Pack it in, Pack it out” and “Leave No Trace”. The one exception to this rule is Recycle Camp, where you can take your aluminum cans only. They collect, crush & bag as many cans as possible in a week and then donate them to the Gerlach School. There the school organizes to recycle them and the school gets to keep the deposit money.
Where do I take my plastic water bottles?
Pack them out. There is still no camp that collects plastic in Black Rock City. Until there is, it is best to have you carry it home with you and recycle it there, or to dispose of them at various recycling locations to be found listed here in the Survival Guide.
Why can’t I recycle glass in Black Rock City?
The truth is we discourage people from bringing glass to the playa in the first place. It is heavy and typically takes up more room in your car.  It is also dangerous when it breaks, especially when it gets thrown in a fire. It makes for an annoying mess to clean up that takes hours. If you must bring it, Pack it Out.
I have left over wood I don’t want to haul back home. Where can I take it? Can I burn it?
Well, you could burn it but that wouldn’t be very smart. The smart thing to do would be to recycle it. Take it to one of the Burners without Borders wood recycling sites at 3, 6 and 9 o’clock along the Esplanade. Help BWB volunteers pull some nails, sort the wood and stack it in neat piles. You’ll feel good and your wood will have a future.
Now that I am recycling, what about composting?
There’s a whole page devoted to composting, check it out. (see Composting)
 Resource Links

Aluminum cans may be brought to Recycle Camp. You can volunteer to help them and ask questions at recycle@burningman.com
There are several 24-hour locations in all directions to responsibly dispose of your recyclables as well as trash and gray water to be found here in the Survival Guide.
 Send Us Your Ideas
Do you have information that would benefit others by being shared on this page? Send it to environment@burningman.com and we will review it for inclusion here!  

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Unilever 

During 2015, Unliever organised training sessions on the circular economy approach, covering a wide range of internal functions and categories. The company encourages managers to complete an Executive Education course on circular economy thought leadership and practical business application by Bradford University School of Management and the Ellen MacArthur Foundation. Unilever also workshops to scope out projects focussed on circular economy principles. Read more at:

Training sessions on the circular economy

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This collection is part of Footprints Africa's work to build a comprehensive database of circular economy initiatives in Africa. 

This is a result of the collaboration with the <a href="https://www.acen.africa" target="_blank">African Circular Economy Network (ACEN)</a>, as part of the programme to support the circular economy transition in Africa. Footprints Africa's vision is that businesses can be a force for good at scale. Their mission is to advance sustainable, scalable and inclusive approaches to development of local African economies. Footprints Africa supports SMEs to adopt future-friendly practices, such as those inspired by the circular economy, to address the challenges of growth and create jobs. 

This open-source dataset features well over 500 cases and 200 examples of policies and laws and intent to collect inspiring examples of initiatives from across Africa, in order to inform the global dialogue, which is largely focused on the European and American context. 

To learn more about Africa's initiatives and content to accelerate the transition to a circular economy, visit https://www.footprintsafrica.co/

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Footprints Africa

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Utilise waste streams as a source of secondary resources and recover waste for reuse and recycling

Use waste as a resource

Work together throughout the supply chain, internally within organisations and with the public sector and communities to increase transparency and create joint value

Team up to create joint value

Give products and parts another life after their end-of-use

Maximise lifetime of products after use

Industry peers to industry peer collaboration to create joint value and identify synergies

Industry collaboration

 To us a circular economy is a system that moves away from the current make-use-dispose model to one where we have designed out waste and pollution, are able to keep products and materials in use, and regenerate natural systems. A circular economy is not a nice to have but a necessity if we are going to develop sustainably. Since the launch of GRIPE, we have been following national, regional and international discussions on how to move towards a more circular economy. As manufacturers and producers, we are constantly adapting the way that our products are being designed, produced and transported to allow for an increase in packaging re-design, reuse and recycling 

Domeabra M/A Junior High School, a primary school in Ejisu Juaben district of Ashanti region, has provided new latrines for its students. They are not just any latrines, as they are built in part with materials made from plastic waste.
It is a building with six latrines. It was built by Ghana Recycling Initiative by Private Enterprises (GRIPE), an association formed mainly by large agri-food companies with interests in Ghana. For example, Coca-Cola, Unilever, Guiness (owned by the British company Diageo, Ndlr), Nestlé, Voltic and PZ Cussons. The GRIPE worked on this project with the Building and Road Research Institute (BRRI) of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR).
A pilot project
The construction of the toilets at Domeabra M/A Junior High School required the processing of 2 tonnes of plastic waste. This material has been integrated into the materials used in the construction of the building. Thus, in mortar, processed plastic waste represented 3% while 80% was used to make the paving stones. “This project, which uses plastic waste as concrete for construction, offers a huge opportunity for large volumes of plastic waste, used waste. Concrete blocks are an important building material in Ghana, representing more than 80% of the built environment,” explains Ama Tagbor, the project’s senior consultant.
GRIPE and BRRI took four months to build the facility housing the latrines at Domeabra M/A Junior High School. The research that led to the construction of the facility began in 2018. “As a pilot research project, the Ghana Industrial Association (GIA) and the GRIPE expect that the scientific data generated by the project will inform policy formulation, further research and replication in other parts of Ghana,” says Ama Tagbor.
The Ghana Recycling Initiative by Private Enterprises (GRIPE) and the Building and Road Research Institute (BRRI) initiative could lead to the construction of additional public toilets from plastic waste, thus contributing to the recovery of plastic waste in Ghana and to the government’s policy to eradicate open defecation that causes public health problems in this West African country.
Jean Marie Takouleu


The Dow Chemical Company officially launched a coalition – named the Ghana Recycling Initiative by Private Enterprises (GRIPE) – in an event held in Accra, Republic of Ghana.
The aim is to improve plastic waste management in the country in collaboration with Coca-Cola, Fan Milk, Guinness, PZ Cussons, Unilever, and Voltic under the auspices of the Association of Ghana Industry (AGI). The coalition is to support government efforts to integrate sustainable waste management solutions, advocate improved waste management practices, contribute to increased collection and recycling rates countrywide, and provide employment opportunities through scalable recycling solutions, the chemical company informed in December last year.
According to Dow, the plastics advocacy project for Ghana began after the government proposed a ban on plastics following a flooding and fire disaster in 2015, which was blamed on poor waste management, particularly of plastic items. The team of the chemical company “led other private sector stakeholders through the Association of Ghana Industries (AGI) in engaging regulators to provide science-based understanding and alternative resolution options”, which was followed by the creation of this private sector recycling coalition (GRIPE). Earlier in 2017, Dow‘s project to Improve Plastic Waste Value Chain in Ghana was granted 200,000 US-Dollar from the company‘s Impact Fund and now includes a three-year financial commitment to GRIPE, as well as a collaboration with two local NGOs (Environment 360 and Asase Foundation) for additional impact.
Ghana’s Minister for Sanitation and Water Resources, Kofi Adda, welcomed the initiative. “We recently launched a National Total Sanitation campaign to tackle sanitation in our major cities. We recognize that the government cannot address the issue of sanitation and plastic waste alone, hence the efforts by industry to rise up to the challenge and help make a difference, this time around, is laudable and worthy of every support they may require to succeed,” he was cited.
Forum on Sustainable Plastic Waste Management
In January this year, Professor Kwabena Frimpong-Boateng, the Minister of Environment, Science, Technology, and Innovation (MESTI), has advised Ghanaians to minimize their use of plastic products and substitute them with degradable materials. The minister, who was addressing participants at a stakeholders’ forum on sustainable plastic waste management, organized by the GIZ (German Corporation for International Cooperation GmbH) in collaboration with MESTI in Accra, said the amount of plastic waste being generated globally on daily basis was reaching alarming proportions.
However, in his view, an immediate ban on the production and use of plastic in the country was not the solution; he advocated a gradual system of effective preparation and sustainable management through useful recycling of waste materials into productive goods. The country could take advantages of the availability of raw materials to generate income, create jobs and turn plastic waste into creative and beneficial products for use, he was quoted by the Ghana News Agency.
As reported, the forum presented a platform for discussions on current trends, emerging issues and best practices from across the world, and gave participants the opportunity to make inputs into the draft of the country’s National Plastic Policy, currently being developed by MESTI, to make it more coherent and implementable. The Ministry’s strategy in managing plastic will hinge on “reducing use, re-use, refuse single-use recycle, and replacement, such as replacement of plastic shopping bags by cotton materials or paper”.
New Waste Treatment Plants
According to media reports, Ghana’s waste management sector is characterized by poor waste collection systems and indiscriminate disposal of refuse. The volume of waste generated by about 29 million Ghanaian inhabitants on a daily basis is estimated at 14,000 tons. In 2015, the country was ranked by the World Health Organization as the 7th dirtiest country in the world, Ghanaweb reported.
Currently, the government is addressing Ghana’s water and sanitation challenges. Each of the country’s regions will get two waste treatment plants, Joseph Kofi Adda, Ghana’s Minister for Sanitation and Water Resources, was quoted in July last year. At a stakeholder forum to devise a three-year strategic plan for the execution of the Ministry’s mandate in tackling the country’s water and sanitation difficulties, he also informed, that the government intends to make Accra the cleanest city in Africa. Ghana‘s first-ever Minister for Sanitation and Water Resources wants to ‘double or triple‘ the budget for water and sanitation in his country to launch a total sanitation campaign.
Water: Ambitious Goals
According to Dutch-based international think-and-do-tank IRC, ambitious tasks await Joseph Kofi Adda, who attended last year’s World Water Week, the world’s biggest conference on water and development held annually in Sweden’s capital Stockholm. The organizations IRC and Safe Water Network work together to achieve Ghana‘s ambitious targets over the coming years.
As reported by non-profit-organization IRC, Ghana‘s plan is to improve the sanitation situation drastically by 2020: “Around 25,300 boreholes will be constructed together with 300 small water systems. One million toilets will be built and Accra should be Africa’s cleanest city in four years’ time. The targets contribute to the larger goal of sustainable water and basic sanitation for all in Ghana by 2025 – a goal that surpasses the global Sustainable Development Goals, which aim to provide everyone with water and sanitation by 2030.” The information provided by IRC also says, that about 60 percent of Ghana’s population has access to basic drinking water. Around 14 percent of the inhabitants have basic sanitation and less than 19 percent have access to water and soap. Waterborne diseases or diseases related to poor sanitation, such as cholera, would continue to affect the population. Diarrhea would kill more than ten thousand children under five every year, IRC referred to information provided by UNICEF.
As reported, user tariffs are paying for around 75 percent of Ghana’s water and sanitation facilities and donors contribute 19 percent. But it is estimated that the donations will decline in the wake of Ghana’s promotion to a lower middle-income status. But the Ghanaian government has secured a two-billion-dollar Chinese loan that will help to build the infrastructure needed for sanitation facilities so that Accra will be the cleanest city in Africa one day.
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Investment Opportunities in Ghana
The Ghana Investment Promotion Center (www.gipcghana.com) co-ordinates and monitors all investment activities and assists domestic and foreign investors.
The Public Procurement Authority (www.ppaghana.org) has the task of ensuring that public procurement is carried out in a fair, transparent, and non-discriminatory manner.
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GR 12018


A group picture after the donationThe Ghana Recycling Initiative by Private Enterprise (GRIPE), an industry-led initiative by eight (8) manufacturing companies under the Association of Ghana Industries (AGI), has donated a sum of GH¢10,000 and some items to the University of Ghana Plastic Recycling Project (UGPRP.The cheque was received by Prof. Anthony Andrew Adjei, Chairman of the Vice Chancellor’s Strategic Team.   While expressing his appreciation to GRIPE, on behalf of the Vice-Chancellor and the Vice Chancellor’s Green Project. Prof. Adjei spoke of the success of the UGPRP and said it was especially gratifying to note that the UGPRP is a student led initiative. He was also grateful to GRIPE for the support to the project since its inception and urged GRIPE to rally for more support from its members. Ms. Joyce Ahiadorme presenting a cheque to Dr. Ted Annang on behalf of GRIPE Prof. Anthony Andrew Adjei, Chairman of the Vice Chancellor’s Strategic TeamIn her remarks, Ms. Joyce Ahiadorme, from Voltic Ghana Ltd, and leader of the GRIPE delegation, said that waste management was a shared responsibility which includes society, waste pickers, recycling industry and the government.  She called for an integrated sustainable waste management solution which will focus on data and research, public advocacy, solutions and implementation as well as multi stakeholder collaboration. Ms. Ahiadorme further indicated that, the duty of the private manufacturer was to improve waste management, facilitate investment, create awareness, contribute to increased recycling rates and provide employment. She assured the University of the continuous support of GRIPE to the UGPRP.Ms. Joyce AhiadormeThe team leader of the UPRP, Mr. Julius Jayson Botchway, used the occasion to highlight the activities of the project and how successful it has been since its inception. According to him, the UGPRP engage in activities such as education and awareness creation, sorting, collection and storing of recyclables and sale of segregated plastics. To aid in improving the project, Mr. Botchway called for additional tricycles, giant bottles for lecture halls and departments, bags for storing collected recyclables, value addition machines, storage unit or a buy-back centre construction and an app to aid in collection and education.Mr. Julius Jayson BotchwayDr. Yirenya-Tawiah, Acting Director, Institute for Environment and Sanitation Studies, (IESS), in her welcome address called for the need to firm up the relationship with GRIPE since this will go a long way to promote the success of the UGPRP.Dr. Benjamin D. Ofori, Co-Chair of the Vice-Chancellor’s Green Project lauded the volunteers especially the collectors for their dedication, commitment and honesty towards the project. He envisaged a stage where plastics from the University would be exchanged for bricks made from plastic to aid in the pavement activities on campus as the University strives to achieve a green and well paved campus.Mrs. Stella A. Amoa, Director of Public Affairs, on her part expressed gratitude to GRIPE and gave assurance of lending support to the publicity efforts of UGPRP.UGPRP is a student–led initiative with full support from the Vice Chancellor’s Green Project. It is a joint initiative from the camps of two student groups namely Technology without Borders (Recycle Up! Ghana) and Cyzoe-Ghana. The project is expected to be a continuous and permanent project on the main and subsequently other campuses of the University of Ghana. It is also aimed at creating an attitudinal change towards plastic waste by instilling a culture of source segregation and recycling of plastic waste to aid the greening of the University of Ghana Campus.Mr. Nana Nathan Afari, Georgina Quin, Samuel Kotoka, Rita Djabah and Lawrence Tenu were adjudged the best six volunteers for the semester.Other members of GRIPE attended the ceremony and presented some of their products.Some University officials with members of GRIPEGRIPE is an initiative led by industry players under the auspices of the Association of Ghana Industries (AGI) and currently has Coca-Cola Bottling Company of Ghana, Dow Chemical West Africa Limited, Fan Milk Ghana Limited, Guinness Ghana Breweries Limited, Nestlé Ghana, PZ Cussons Ghana Limited, Unilever Ghana and Voltic (GH) Limited, as founding members.

Ghana

The Coca-Cola Company is an American multinational beverage corporation founded in 1892, best known as the producer of Coca-Cola. The Coca-Cola Company also manufactures, sells, and markets other non-alcoholic beverage concentrates and syrups, and alcoholic beverages.

Coca Cola

Guinness

Founded in 2017, GRIPE is a project initiated by a coalition of eight multinational companies operating in Ghana with the common objective of contributing to the reduction of plastic waste. The solutions proposed will be based on the collection of plastic waste by means of containers with capacity development for waste pickers, second-life solutions, processing in new shredding and processing plants, research into solutions for behavioral changes, multi-stakeholder collaborations, education, public campaigning through conferences and digital national campaigns.

Ghana Recycling Initiative by Private Enterprises (GRIPE)

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Starter Kit collection

Impact on the availability of resources as well as their effect on living organisms, ecosystems, and components of the environment.

Ecological Impact

Impacts on the social fabric of the community and well-being of the individuals and families.

Social Impact

Impacts on the financial condition of a company, as well as the the economicconditions of its stakeholders and on economic systems at local, national, andglobal levels.

Economic Impact

Contribution to social parity, or impact on social disparity

Equality

Direct and indirect reduction in economic costs

Cost Savings

Scalability

Minimise waste through diversion: Instead of sending waste to landfill, it is redirected into other industrial processes for handling, treatment, recycling, recovery, or reuse in various forms. 

Minimise waste through design: At the outset of a process of project, plan and design such that there is zero waste or minimal waste during production, use, and at end of life. 

Minimise Waste (SDG12)

Contributing to the improvement of biodiversity including species diversity, total number of protected species, and ecosystem health

Biodiversity

Producing agricultural products and processing them into food and beverageproducts for consumption

Agri/Food

Producing and providing business and consumer goods and services

Goods and Services

Producing and providing leisure and personal products and services for consumers, such as cleaning products, sports equipment and toys, personal and beauty care products, as well as domestic and personal services such as caretaking, cleaning, hairdressing and other beauty treatment, funeral and related activities

Personal Products and Services

Providing goods on the Internet, through mail order, or television, or providing goods in stores, including apparel, electronics, furniture, food and drug, etc.

Retail

Processing and producing food and beverages for consumption

Food and Beverage

Consider opportunities to create greater value and align incentives that build on the interaction between products and services

Rethink the business model

Deliver products through business models that ensure maximum value

Product business models

Selling parts of modular products that can be refilled

Sale of refillable parts

Use longer and more often by extending and intensifying use of existing resources, products, spaces and infrastructure

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Reuse

Maintain and repair city-owned spaces and infrastructure to increase longevity, and support opportunities for residents to do the same for privately owned items and property

Support reuse, repair, remanufacturing, maintenance of existing resources, products, spaces & infrastructure

The food system nourishes populations and employs 50% of the global workforce, but:
- it currently drives a quarter of the overshoot on the climate change planetary boundary due to its greenhouse gas (GHG) production, 
- animal farming alone uses over one-quarter of all land, equivalent to the size of the Americas,
- nearly a quarter of freshwater resources are lost due to rampant food waste, and
- it is the single largest driver of biodiversity loss.

A circular food system must address the whole value chain, from production to consumption to waste management. The four key solutions for the food system are:
- Put healthier, satiating foods first: Prioritise satiating and healthy foods with a lower environmental impact—ideally shifting calories from meat, fish, and dairy towards cereals, fruits, vegetables, and nuts.
- Go local, seasonal, and organic: Prioritise the production and consumption of local, seasonal, and organic produce (sometimes in combination with GMO to reduce pests and disease loss on crops), which can lead to a significantly reduced need for chemical inputs, fuels, and processing services that contribute to environmental impacts.
- Mainstream regenerative agriculture: Scale up agricultural practices that regenerate ecosystems, recirculate nutrients and sequester carbon by design. 
- End avoidable food waste: Minimise food loss and valorise waste following the food waste hierarchy along the supply chain and at the consumer level through better management of transport and storage, more refrigeration and smart planning, and technology at the consumer and food service levels.



🍏 Food Systems

Businesses

Single-use packaging is ubiquitous in food services and retail, yet it is increasingly linked to multiple health, sanitation and environmental problems - polluting both the city, its waterways  and surrounding ecosystems. 

Reusable food and drink containers can help to design out and eliminate, where possible, the use of single-use packaging in food services and retail. Reusable containers can be used, washed and reused multiple times to mitigate plastics pollution at its source.

Commonly, the implementation of reusable food and drinks containers relies on a strong collaboration with businesses to adopt such schemes. Yet, local governments can play an important role in promoting and supporting these behaviours. This support can come in a variety of forms, for example, awareness raising campaigns aimed at residents, as well as  promoting businesses that are engaging with reusable food and drink containers. Experimental zones can also be used to test and encourage the use of reusable containers. Local governments can, in partnership with regional and national governments, regulate the use of certain materials and packaging in the city, which incentivises reusable packaging for food and drink.

*Caution: with their often higher per-unit impact when compared with single-use alternatives, implementing reusable container schemes must be balanced with behaviour change away from a throw-away mindset to ensure that these containers are used multiple times, otherwise the expected environmental impact may not be realised. *


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🍏  Reusable food and drink containers

Impacts

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The Circular City Actions Framework provides urban changemakers with five complementary strategies they can use to start working towards a more circular system. 

The framework is action-based to provide users with concrete strategic directions and showcase the desired outcomes of each strategy. 
The framework consists of five complementary **strategies**, under which **sub-strategies** provide further detail. Finally, each sub-strategy consists of a diversity of tangible **solutions** which are framed in relation to key thematic areas. 

Note: solutions are currently focused on:
- 🍏 **Food systems**
- 🏢  **Built environment**
- 👕📱  **Consumer goods**
- ⚡ **Energy Systems**
- 🚌 **Mobility Systems**
- 💧 **Water Systems**

More thematic areas are coming soon...

'Click through each of the five strategy cards below to explore the framework and circular economy case studies in more depth!'



This framework was developed in collaboration with ICLEI, Metabolic and Ellen MacArthur Foundation with support from the MAVA Foundation. Read more about it [here]( https://circulars.iclei.org/action-framework/). 



Circular City Actions Framework

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An action-based framework for local governments working towards circular cities

Thematic Areas

City Stakeholders

Algramo, a Santiago-based startup, offers affordable quantities of everyday products without single-use packaging, which have a detrimental effect on biodiversity. Targeting economies where recycling infrastructure is limited and packaging items often end up in the environment, Algramo introduces a reusable packaging system involving smart technology, dispensers, and affordable containers. Algramo’s refill-on-the-go system in Santiago has proven resilient to shocks: sales increased by 356% between April and June 2020 while the city was in full lockdown. After their success in Chile, Algramo is working with Walmart, Unilever, Nestlé’s Purina and other players to expand their services and scale up. At the international level, they already have pilot programs in the US and Indonesia, and are looking to enter new markets, including Mexico and the UK. Biodiversity benefitsDuring their one-year pilot in partnership with Unilever, some of Algramo’s customers refilled their detergent bottles 15 times, with each refill eliminating the need for an HDPE bottle and its associated impacts on biodiversity, whilst keeping the original refillable bottle in use and out of the environment.


Maxine Perella Published 2 years ago.
About a 6 minute read.
Image: The Algramo 2.0 tricycle delivery system | Algramo

Algramo’s unique, refillable packaging system allows customers to buy as much or as little of a product as they want, in reusable containers, with no difference in the price per gram — then recycles all packaging at the end of its life.

In recent weeks, the streets of Santiago have been awash with protestors
expressing their anger over the cost of living in the city. The high levels of
inequality in the Chilean capital and more broadly across the country have
resulted in mass upheaval and unrest, leaving the ruling elites struggling to
restore public order.
Against this backdrop, it’s perhaps not surprising to understand how successful
one circular startup, Algramo, has become since its
launch in 2013. Algramo’s purpose is not only to help consumers rethink grocery
shopping, but to use its model as a force for social good. In Santiago, that
means tackling what Algramo’s Brian Bauer calls the “poverty tax” faced by
shoppers on low incomes.
“When you live in the bottom of the pyramid in Latin America, you tend to buy
your food from small, family-owned grocery stores,” he says. “People often don’t
have money to buy food in large amounts, so they are forced to buy it in small
amounts.”
Store owners will repackage bulk staple items such as rice, lentils and cleaning
products into smaller packages — so, instead of buying a kilogram of product, a
customer might purchase a 250-gram bag.

 Join us as the Clorox Company, Johnson & Johnson Consumer Health and Grounded.World discuss how brands and retailers are coming together to inspire sustainable behavior change by making it easy for consumers to close the intention-to-action gap — June 8 at Brand-Led Culture Change. 
“That smaller weight significantly increases the cost of the product, typically
anywhere from 30 percent to 50 percent,” Bauer says. “It also produces more
packaging waste.”
Bauer works on circular economy and strategic alliances at Algramo. He is
helping to scale up the original model, Algramo 1.0, that founder Jose Manuel
Moller set up. Moller wanted to not only address these prohibitive prices
faced by low-income food shoppers, but enable them to access the right amount of
product they required without the need for single-use packaging.

Algramo, which literally means "by the gram," combines a number of circular
principles —
refill, reuse and optimized reverse logistics. It is basically a
refillable packaging system allowing customers to buy as much or as little of a
product as they want, in reusable containers, with no difference in the price
per gram. Once the containers reach the end of their life, they can be traded in
by shoppers for a new container — this deposit ensures packaging goes back to
Algramo, for recycling at end of life.
Since its inception, the Algramo 1.0 model has expanded to 2,000 stores in
Santiago, reaching roughly 350,000 customers. In 60 of those stores, Algramo has
installed vending machines, which automatically dispense the products. In the
others, Algramo’s own reverse logistics team visits on a regular basis to stock
up product while collecting any empty packaging containers, which are
subsequently cleaned and refilled for delivery back to the stores.
“We always strive to offer products that are in demand and used a lot,” Bauer
says. “If you’re going to the trouble of doing reuse, you want to make sure you
do that with fast-moving products to create more impact.”
Bauer says when the model was first rolled out, initial reuse rates weren’t even
hitting 10 percent, but they now stand at over 80 percent: “We played around
with the price of the packaging and got people more interested about the
benefits of reuse.”
In 2018, these impressive reuse rates attracted the interest of major brands
including Unilever and now
Nestlé. Interest from global
brands has paved the way for Algramo 2.0 — in which, as Bauer explains: “We are
taking the technology and distribution systems that we created with the 1.0
model and integrating those into the supply chains of global brands.”
Both models target different markets. Algramo 2.0 is aimed more at middle-income
neighbourhoods, and will be built on brand partnerships. The startup is working
with Unilever on the first Algramo 2.0 model, which launched in May on the
streets of Santiago. It’s a mobile home-refill service selling cobranded
Algramo-Unilever products such as laundry detergent and dish soap — the
dispensing machine is mounted on an electric tricycle — and can be hailed to
your home, free of charge, for onsite refill.
“It’s kind of like an ‘Uber Eats’ service,” Bauer says. “For people in cities
who don’t have cars, this creates a compelling value proposition. If you have to
walk several blocks to the grocery store, you don’t want to be carrying back
heavy items. With us, you can get refill at your house and have transport
provided for the bulkier items. This is especially valuable for our next
product, Nestlé dog and cat food.”
The system encourages cashless payments through RFID
tags
on the containers and an app; but until the app is fully developed, tricycle
drivers also have the ability to take cash payments and transfer the funds
digitally onto the packaging. A ‘sustainable consumption credit’ offers a
discount on the next purchase when shoppers bring the containers back,
incentivising reuse rates further.
“A key part of the rationale is that, to make reuse popular, you need to lower
the product cost — the more the better,” Bauer says. “A lot of evidence I’ve
seen says a 30 percent to 40 percent discount is a critical threshold number to
get people interested in reusable packaging. You also need to make reuse
convenient, and the tricycle provides that.”
Brands who sell through the Algramo system can also expect to see significant
cost benefits due to reduced packaging and optimized logistics, enabling them to
offer products at a lower price.

Algramo founder José Manuel Moller with Nuria Hernández, CEO of Unilever Chile, and the Algramo 2.0 tricycle | Image credit: Algramo
“With our Unilever model, Omo laundry detergent is about 30 percent less
expensive then what you’d pay for them in a corporate supermarket at the regular
price,” Bauer says. “Brands are excited to be able to lower their product costs,
as this gives them a significant competitive advantage.”
Algramo funded the first tricycle and Bauer says Unilever has agreed to fund a
further nine tricycles, which should all be on the streets by the end of the
year. Going forward, the company intends to expand into international markets —
first and most notably, the US — before expanding across Latin America; Bauer
says expansion into certain markets will depend on the right implementation
partners.
“We have a strategic implementation partner set up for the US, and that is
enabling us to move a lot faster than originally planned,” he intimated. “In the
second half of 2020, we’re hoping to be in the US. Shortly after that, we hope
to enter into other geographies, as well.
“We’re keen to give this opportunity to as many people as possible, in as many
countries as possible. In the higher-income markets, that’s where most of the
consumption and packaging waste occurs, so we can have a big impact on reducing
the plastic
footprint
there.”
In scaling up, Bauer anticipates a few issues along the way, one of these being
co-innovation risk.
“We’re working with a lot of different brands, technology providers, government
regulators … and we need them all to be working together optimally and
efficiently as possible to ensure the system is robust.”
Circular business models that can deliver both sustainability and social impacts
are still thin on the ground, which is what makes Algramo’s proposition so
compelling. As Bauer aptly puts it: “What we are doing has never been done
before.” 

                 Your browser does not support HTML video.                Algramo es la nueva forma de reutilizar.   Algramo es la nueva forma de reutilizar.       Algramo es la nueva forma de reutilizar.   Algramo es la nueva forma de reutilizar.       Algramo es la nueva forma de reutilizar.   Algramo es la nueva forma de reutilizar.             Tomamos los aprendizajes del pasado, la innovación del presente, y las ganas de recargar el futuro. Con todo esto, creamos una plataforma circular que te permite comprar tus productos favoritos en envases reutilizables, y sin pagar de más.                           


              José Manuel Moller, Fundador y CEO de Algramo.                                     Compra el último envase de tu vida y deja de generar desechos       Podrás ver y gestionar tus envases      Revisa el impacto que has generado      Podrás comprar tus productos favoritos en envases reutilizables (ya sea a domicilio o en la estación de recarga más cercana) y revisar el plástico que has evitado en semanas, meses y años. Te encantará.                 Compra el último envase de tu vida y deja de generar desechos         Podrás ver y gestionar tus envases        Revisa el impacto que has generado                                                                                 Recarguemos el futuro. Recarguemos el futuro. Recarguemos el futuro.   Recarguemos el futuro. Recarguemos el futuro. Recarguemos el futuro.       Recarguemos el futuro. Recarguemos el futuro. Recarguemos el futuro.   Recarguemos el futuro. Recarguemos el futuro. Recarguemos el futuro.       Recarguemos el futuro. Recarguemos el futuro. Recarguemos el futuro.   Recarguemos el futuro. Recarguemos el futuro. Recarguemos el futuro.                  
 

United States

New York

Santiago

Chile

Colgate-Palmolive

Clorox

Algramo

Algramo, a Santiago-based startup, offers affordable quantities of everyday products without single-use packaging, which have a detrimental effect on biodiversity.

Refill System Helps Both the Poor and the Environment in Santiago

Impact on increased knowledge and understanding as a result of the case study

Increase Awareness

Impact on the quantity or quality of jobs, and shifts in the labour market

Jobs

Collecting waste from households and businesses by means of refuse bins, wheeled bins, containers, etc., and providing treatment, incineration, materials recovery and reclamation, and disposal of hazardous and non-hazardous waste

Waste Management

Engage with the local community where facilities or offices are located

Community collaboration

Collection programmes that process products and parts for reuse or recycling within the same industry

Closed loop collection

   26 June 2019 - Wits University  A Johannesburg-based pilot will formally integrate reclaimers (waste pickers) into the recycling economy of South Africa for the important service they provide. On World Environment Day, observed on 5 June 2019, Unilever South Africa, the African Reclaimer Organisation (ARO) in partnership with  Wits University announced their upcoming pilot project: ‘Building an inclusive circular economy: recycling with reclaimers. The Johannesburg-based pilot will formally integrate reclaimers – also known as waste pickers – for the important service they provide and is designed to demonstrate the benefits reclaimers provide with their separation at source services.
The recycling rates across South Africa are on the rise, due to the great focus on recycling by government, industry, reclaimers, corporates and conscious consumers. The latest statistics released by the national industry body PET Recycling Company (PETCO), have shown that, “98 649 tonnes of post-consumer PET plastic bottles were recycled in 2018 alone (a 6% increase from 2017), saving 612 000 cubic metres of landfill space and lessening the country’s carbon emissions footprint by 148 000 tonnes. An average of 6.2 million PET plastic bottles were collected for recycling across South Africa every day last year, creating 68,000 income-generating opportunities for small and micro-collectors.”

The announcement was made at a panel discussion which key stakeholders including the Department of Environmental Affairs, the City of Johannesburg Metropolitan, the recycling industry (Packaging SA) as well as project partner representation from consumer goods company (Unilever South Africa), ARO, WIEGO (Women in Informal Employment, Globalizing and Organizing) and Wits. Hosted by ARO members (reclaimers), the discussion explored the impact reclaimer integration could have on South Africa’s ‘circular economy’, a restorative and regenerative model where materials constantly flow around a ‘closed loop’ system, rather than being used once and then discarded.
The panelists reviewed the industry wins and also discussed a major gap within the South African circular economy – which is the need to recognise, support and value the 60,000 – 90,000 informal reclaimers who sift through waste to salvage the recyclable materials that many throw away. These reclaimers earn their livelihood by collecting and selling recyclable material to recycling companies and together, collect approximately 80-90% of postconsumer paper and packaging collected in South Africa for recycling companies to reuse and have extended the life of landfills and saved municipalities up to R750 million a year in landfill airspace.
Dr Melanie Samson, Senior Lecturer in the Wits School of Geography, Archaeology and Environmental Studies said that “reclaimers are already central to the recycling economy. Integration isn’t about bringing them in; rather it is about integrating reclaimers into our understanding of the recycling economy.”
Samson says that the pilot project is significant as it is the first time that reclaimers will be paid. “This is the first concrete step to implement the Guideline on Waste Picker Integration for South Africa,” she added.
The core aim of the pilot project, headed up by ARO and due to launch in September 2019, is to work closely with reclaimers and residents in the Brixton and Auckland Park communities to demonstrate that reclaimers can provide an efficient, cost effective separation at source service.  The project will aim to increase collection rates of recyclable material from households and offices, improve the livelihoods for the reclaimers through recognition and compensation for their collection work, as well as overall community behaviour change on waste management and perceptions of reclaimers.
Unilever has collaborated in this pilot because they believe in the long-term opportunities for building a more inclusive circular economy. Luc-Olivier Marquet Executive Vice President of Unilever South Africa said that “the backing and funding of this pilot project forms part of Unilever’s Sustainable Living Plan (USLP) that has ambitions to reduce the company’s environmental impact by half by 2030 (across various areas including Greenhouse gases, water use, waste & packaging as well as sustainable sourcing),” he added that “Unilever has committed to 100% reduction in our single use plastic packaging by 2025, with our flagship brand, Sunlight Dishwashing Liquid, leading the way for this ambition having recently launched their 100% recycled and recyclable bottles.”
Luyanda Hlatshwayo, Reclaimer and Organising Committee Member from ARO, said, “reclaimers work long hours in tough conditions to collect recyclables. But we receive only a small income from the sale of the materials we collect. We believe that if reclaimers are recognised and compensated for our collection work, and if households’ separate recyclables from their waste, we will together achieve higher collection rates of recyclable material as well as improved livelihoods for reclaimers. We hope this project will be the start of a leap forward for reclaimers.”
In addition to funding the reclaimer service fees Unilever and Sunlight will be focused on supporting the reclaimers and ARO in the ongoing need to educate and encourage the pilot project communities to play their part in sustainability practices and to support the project. The long-term benefits and goals for Unilever are to encourage South Africa to recycle and understand the role of reclaimers to help drive the system forward in order to increase recycling while reducing waste to landfills. 

     We are waste reclaimers. We collect, sort, transport and sell materials, saving the state and private industry millions and extending the life of landfills. We perform a vital environmental service, removing thousands of tons of discarded materials every year. We are men and women with families who work hard to make a living. We support our children to fund their schooling, we feed and clothe them and we never collect waste. We collect that which is of value but is discarded by many in society. We look forward to meeting residents, industry and government and to make our struggles and contributions to society known. With ARO we are no longer in the shadows and we look forward to meeting you.        We want South Africa to increase its recycling rates and for informal recyclers to be paid for the free labour they provide, which is the foundation of the recycling economy worth hundreds of millions of rands. We also want to work with residents to make ourselves known as people who share your streets and also want to remove the stigma that our work brings.    Click Here To Donate Or Contact Us To Get Involved   Support our cause by following our social media pages & inviting your friends to follow our social platforms so we can spread awareness on the reclaimer’s valuable role.   We are passionate about our cause, and teaching our youth about recycling is vital for a greener future. Make a booking with us to come do a talk at your local school.   Please show your support for our valuable reclaimers by donating to the Back-A-Buddy campaign set up to support reclaimers during the COVID-19 Lockdown.                                

South Africa

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Johannesburg

City of Johannesburg

African Reclaimers Organisation

Waste pickers will be officially integrated into South Africa's recycling economy as part of a pilot project called the African Reclaimers Organisation (ARO), based in Johannesburg. The program aims to enhance the collection of recyclable materials from homes and offices, boost reclaimers' livelihoods by reimbursing them for their work and change public attitudes toward waste management and reclaimers.

Circular Waste Management Initiative in Johannesburg Employing Waste Pickers 

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Circular food systems entail that the food is produced regeneratively and, where appropriate, locally. Food and packaging waste are designed out entirely, while healthy, low-impact diets are promoted and easy to access. 

[Circle Economy](https://www.circle-economy.com/) is a not-for-profit organisation working to accelerate the circular transition. Through the *Circularity Gap Reporting Initiative*, our mission is to deliver an annual global Circularity Metric that measures the state of the world economy and identifies key levers to transition to global circularity. With nature as our guide, we work alongside cross-sector stakeholders from academia, businesses, NGOs and governments to provide a powerful combination of practical and scalable interventions that transform circular opportunities into realities. 

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Circular Food

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Limes and lemons - Photo by Jon Tyson on Unsplash

Account for the systems perspective during the design process, to use the right materials, to design for appropriate lifetime and to design for extended future use

Design for the future

Food losses and waste

In a circular economy:

* Food is produced regeneratively and, where possible, locally; 
* Biomass is optimally used—from agricultural by-products to manure, rainwater or used water; 
* Food losses and waste and packaging waste are designed out entirely; 
* Healthy, planetary diets are promoted and easier to access; and 
* Environmental and economic benefits are balanced with benefits to people and animals.

This definition builds on those of the [Ellen MacArthur Foundation](https://ellenmacarthurfoundation.org/cities-and-circular-economy-for-food), [Wageningen University](https://www.wur.nl/en/Dossiers/file/Circular-agrofood-system.htm), the [Platform for Accelerating the Circular Economy](https://pacecircular.org/sites/default/files/2021-02/circular-economy-action-agenda-food_0.pdf ) (PACE), as well as Circle Economy’s own work in analysing the climate mitigation potential of [circular food interventions](http://circularity-gap.world/2021).

Explore the different themes under this definition below.

Circular food themes

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Explore different themes under the concept of 'circular food'

        Better understanding and use of date marking on food, i.e. "use by" and "best before" dates, by all actors concerned, can prevent and reduce food waste in the EU.A study carried out by the European Commission (2018), estimates that up to 10% of the 88 million tonnes of food waste generated annually in the EU are linked to date marking.   In order to help inform its work on date marking, the Commission launched a study to map how date marking is used in the market by food business operators and control authorities.The market study found wide variation in date marking practices within product categories surveyed in the EU. The legibility of date marks was judged to be poor for 11% of products sampled. The study highlights the role that strengthened cooperation and innovation in the food supply chain can play in preventing food waste and finds that additional guidance may be needed to facilitate food redistribution past the "best before" date.Based on the study's findings, the authors conclude that avoidable food waste linked to date marking is likely to be reduced where:a date mark is present, its meaning is clear and it is legible;consumers have a good understanding of the meaning of date marking (and the difference between "use by" as an indicator of safety and "best before" as an indicator of quality); "use by" dates are used only where there is a safety-based rationale for doing so, consistent with the Regulation on Food Information to Consumersthe product life stated on the packaging is consistent with the findings of safety and quality tests, and is not shortened unnecessarily by other considerations, such as product marketing;storage and open life guidance are consistent with the findings of safety and quality tests;there is a level of consistency in storage of food at retail and guidance for consumers regarding the temperatures at which products should be stored in the home.Market study on date marking and other information provided on food labels and food waste prevention.   Misinterpretation by consumers of the meaning of the "use by" and "best before" dates can contribute to household food waste. As called for by the new Farm to Fork Strategy, the Commission will propose, by the end of 2022, the revision of EU rules on date marking. In doing so, the Commission aims to prevent food waste linked to misunderstanding and/or misuse of these dates, whilst ensuring that any proposed change meets consumers’ information needs and does not jeopardise food safety.The Commission is currently carrying out an impact assessment (with public and targeted consultations) to support its proposal, as well as consumer research to identify new ways of expressing date marking that meet consumers’ information needs whilst minimising food waste. The Commission published its inception impact assessment on 23 December 2020, which considers different policy options and describes the work that will be carried out in this regard. The document is publicly available here.   Consumer research to support the proposal to revise EU rules on date markingThe consumer research findings will shed light on how consumers themselves understand and use these dates and will identify and test new ways of expressing date marking (e.g. changes in terminology, format, visual presentation) in order to identify options that meet consumers’ information needs, whilst avoiding unnecessary food waste linked to the misunderstanding and misuse of date marking.The consumer research is on-going and so far the contractor in charge of this work has carried out:an inventory and review of evidence on consumer behaviour regarding date marking and food waste;stakeholder interviews (including with national authorities);consumer focus groups across 10 Member States during which a set of policy options has been tested.Following the focus groups, policy options (in all EU official languages) have been further refined in view of testing these through quantitative consumer research to be carried out through online surveys in 27 Member States and, at a final stage, through a laboratory experiment in selected Member States to assess how these policy options influence consumers’ decision-making process.On 30 November 2021, the Commission held an online targeted consultation, with members of the EU Platform on Food Losses and Food Waste and food labelling experts from the Member States, related to the revision of EU date marking rules and this consumer research. The aim  was to exchange with participants on the date marking policy options developed so far to help inform the next phases of this work. Comments received will allow further refining of these options before proceeding with fieldwork to test the effectiveness of the selected policy options in avoiding food waste linked to date marking.Background material of this meeting:Presentation by the CommissionPresentation by the contractor in chargePrevious studies:Flash Eurobarometer 425 on food waste and date markingIn 2015, the Commission carried out pan-European quantitative consumer research in order to find out more about people's attitudes to food waste prevention. The study also looked into citizen's awareness, understanding and use of date marking on food products.Flash Eurobarometer 425 on food waste and date markingBehavioural study on consumer choices linked to date markingDuring EXPO 2015, a behavioural study on consumers' food choices and eating habits was conducted to explore how consumers respond to the absence of "best before" dates on shelf stable, non-perishable foods such as: pasta, coffee, UHT orange juice and canned tomato sauce. The study highlights the importance of the "best before" date in reassuring consumers about product quality and safety throughout their shelf life. The presence of the "best before" date also reduces the likelihood of consumers throwing away foods before the end of the period indicated on the food labels.More information and the Report at the Commission's site on Behavioural research   How date marking is utilised by food business operators and regulatory authorities in managing the supply chain can also have an impact on food waste. For example, the approaches followed by food business operators in defining date marking (e.g. whether to utilise a "use by" or "best before" date), market practices (such as the amount of shelf life required by retailers on product delivery) and national rules on the further distribution and use of foods past the "best before" date, can all influence the generation of food waste in the supply chain.In this context, the Commission requested a scientific opinion from the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) in order to support food business operators in the application of relevant EU rules. Helping food business operators in their decision making on the choice between "use by" or "best before" dates and on setting the appropriate shelf-life, storage conditions and open life instructions will improve the understanding and use of date marking and contribute to the better management of foods by all actors, which will have an impact on food waste reduction.   Mandate to EFSA for a scientific opinion on date marking and related food informationWith the first scientific opinion (adopted in October 2020), EFSA experts have developed a risk-based approach to be followed by food business operators when deciding on the type of date marking (i.e. "use by" versus "best before" date), when setting the product shelf-life and when identifying the related information to provide on labelling in order to ensure food safety.EFSA also developed a decision tree, consisting of a series of questions, to assist food business operators in choosing the type of date marking for their products.The second opinion (adopted in March 2021), focusses on other food information aspects, such as storage conditions, time limits for consumption after opening, defrosting advice for consumers and thawing practices.  
     

          The Consumer Goods Forum and Champions 12.3 issue landmark call to use two simple date labels by 2020 NEW YORK, 20th September 2017 — “Sell by,” “Use by,” “Display until,” “Best before,” what do they all mean? Consumers around the world navigate a range of date labels on food products, and the resulting confusion costs families up to $29 billion annually in the United States alone. The Consumer Goods Forum (CGF) – a network of 400 of the biggest consumer goods companies across 70 countries – along with Champions 12.3 has approved a Call to Action to standardise food date labels worldwide by 2020.
The CGF Board of Directors unanimously adopted the Call to Action to simplify date labels, including companies like Tesco, Kellogg, Walmart, Campbell Soup, Bimbo, Pick n Pay, Nestlé, Carrefour and Unilever. The Call to Action says retailers and food producers should take three important steps to simplify date labels and reduce food waste by 2020: 
Only one label at a time
Choice of two labels: one expiration date for perishable items (e.g. “Use by”) and one food quality indicator for non-perishable items (e.g., “Best if used by”). The exact wording will be tailored to regional context
Consumer education to better understand what date labels mean
 The announcement expands national efforts to streamline date labels in the United States, United Kingdom and Japan to the rest of the world. 
In addition to the labels on products, the Call to Action recommends companies partner with nonprofit organisations and government agencies to educate consumers about how to interpret date labels. Education efforts could include in-store displays, web materials and public service announcements. Many consumers don’t know, for example, that many products are still safe to eat past the “Best if used by” date.
“Four years ago, Tesco was one of the first retailers to roll out single date coding across our fresh food and meat produce. All the evidence from WRAP and our own Tesco research has shown that streamlining date codes helps customers waste less food and it also reduces waste in our own operations. That’s why it’s so important we extend this practice to more companies in every country. Streamlining date labels worldwide by 2020 could be game-changing in the fight against global food waste”, said Dave Lewis, Group Chief Executive of Tesco and Chair of Champions 12.3.
“Kellogg Company is working to reduce food loss and waste along the production and supply chains, and we want to encourage consumers to be part of the solution too. As a global food company, we work to reduce hunger, improve nutrition and protect the planet”, said Maria Fernanda Mejia, Sr. Vice President of the Kellogg Company and President of Kellogg Latin America. “Simplifying food date labels is an important step forward in preventing food waste, and will help end the confusion related to ‘sell by’ dates. Kellogg is an enthusiastic supporter of improved and harmonised food labelling standards to help educate and empower consumers to prevent food waste, save their families money, and conserve resources to protect our planet”. 
“Walmart has worked with its suppliers to support the use of standardised date labels that provide consistent and transparent information to better reflect product’s shelf life”, said Katherine Neebe, Director for Sustainability at Walmart. “I commend CGF for leveraging their influence to support customer-friendly labelling practices”.
An estimated 1.3 billion tonnes of food worldwide is lost or wasted each year. The average UK household with children spends £700 a year on food that’s thrown away – in the United States, that figure is $1,500. Standardising food date labels is a simple and effective way to reduce the amount of edible food thrown out by households, saving them money and reducing their environmental footprint. Food loss and waste is a major contributor to climate change, emitting 8 percent of annual greenhouse gases.
“Now more than ever is the time for business to play a leading role in tackling food waste. This is an issue that can only truly be tackled by collaboration across the value chain. Through our global membership, the CGF is committed to playing a leadership role. We believe simplified and consistent date labelling will help us get one step closer to meeting our resolution to halve food waste by 2025 while also helping reduce confusion for consumers”, said Peter Freedman, Managing Director of The Consumer Goods Forum.
Today’s announcement was made at a Champions 12.3 event at The Rockefeller Foundation during Climate Week and the 72nd United Nations General Assembly. This week marks two years since the launch of the Sustainable Development Goals. At the event, Champions 12.3 also launched SDG Target 12.3 on Food Loss and Waste: 2017 Progress Report, which takes stock of global progress to date toward halving food waste and reducing food loss by 2030.
“The Sustainable Development Goals have given us a historic opportunity and we must rise to the challenge”, said Hans Hoogeveen, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of the Netherlands to the UN Organizations for Food and Agriculture. “Of all the SDGs, Target 12.3 is the only one to my knowledge that is being advocated by a coalition like Champions 12.3 with leaders from every sector mobilising action to achieve success. We stand a great chance, but a lot of work remains”. 
The report finds that countries and companies are setting reduction targets aligned with SDG Target 12.3 – today, 28 percent of the world’s population live in a country or region with a target to reduce food loss and waste, and nearly 60 percent of the world’s 50 largest food companies have set reduction targets.
Innovative initiatives are also taking off, especially in the private sector. A growing number of the 50 largest food companies now have active food loss and waste reduction programmes. However, the report finds an insufficient number of governments and companies are measuring and reporting food loss and waste, a key step to identifying hotspots and knowing whether strategies are having impact.
“It is good to see clear signs of momentum building behind the movement to tackle food loss and waste and the leadership being demonstrated by individual Champions and others”, said Liz Goodwin, Senior Fellow and Director, Food Loss and Waste at World Resources Institute. “However, 2030 is only 13 years away, and more is needed. We now have a roadmap for how to cut in half the more than 1 billion tonnes of food that goes uneaten each year, and it’s vital that governments and the private sector everywhere put it to use”. 
“The report we co-authored with WRI shows we are moving in the right direction, but we need to build momentum quickly. We need action from everyone from governments, businesses, NGOs and us all in our homes: uniting in the food waste fight”, said Marcus Gover, Chief Executive of WRAP. “It is also essential that developing nations get the financial support they need to tackle food loss and waste. We have gathering impetus, and now we have something which could help navigate us all to our destination. There is no time to lose”.
Read SDG Target 12.3 on Food Loss and Waste: 2017 Progress Report here: https://champions123.org/2017-progress-report/ — Ends — About Champions 12.3
Champions 12.3 is a coalition of more than three dozen leaders across government, business and civil society dedicated to inspiring ambition, mobilising action, and accelerating progress toward achieving Target 12.3 of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. Target 12.3 calls on the world to “halve per capita global food waste at the retail and consumer levels and reduce food losses along production and supply chains, including post-harvest losses” by 2030.
The Government of the Kingdom of the Netherlands and the World Resources Institute serve as co-secretariats of Champions 12.3. For more information, visit www.Champions123.org CHAMPIONS INCLUDE: 

Dave Lewis, Group Chief Executive, Tesco (Chair)
Erik Solheim, Executive Director, United Nations Environment (Co-Chair)
Vytenis Andriukaitis, European Commissioner for Health and Food Safety
Peter Bakker, President, World Business Council for Sustainable Development
John Bryant, Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer, Kellogg Company
Paul Bulcke, Chairman of the Board of Directors, Nestlé
Nguyen Xuan Cuong, Minister of  Agriculture and Rural Development, Vietnam

Michael La Cour, Managing Director, IKEA Food Services AB

Wiebe Draijer, Chairman of the Executive Board, Rabobank
Shenggen Fan, Director General, International Food Policy Research Institute
Peter Freedman, Managing Director, The Consumer Goods Forum
Louise Fresco, President of the Executive Board, Wageningen University & Research
Liz Goodwin, Senior Fellow and Director, Food Loss and Waste, World Resources Institute
Marcus Gover, Chief Executive Officer, Waste and Resources Action Programme
Hans Hoogeveen, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of the Netherlands to the UN Organizations for Food and Agriculture
Gilbert Houngbo, President, International Fund for Agricultural Development 
Selina Juul, Chairman of the Board and Founder, Stop Wasting Food Movement in Denmark
Yolanda Kakabadse, President, WWF International
Sam Kass, Former White House Chef, Founder of TROVE and Venture Partner, Acre Venture Partners
Michel Landel, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Executive Committee, Sodexo
Esben Lunde Larsen, Minister of Environment and Food, Denmark
José Antonio Meade, Minister of Finance, Mexico
Gina McCarthy, Former Administrator, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
Denise Morrison, President and Chief Executive Officer, Campbell Soup Company
Kanayo Nwanze, Former President, International Fund for Agricultural Development
Rafael Pacchiano, Minister of the Environment and Natural Resources, Mexico
Paul Polman, Chief Executive Officer, Unilever
Juan Lucas Restrepo Ibiza, Chairman, Global Forum on Agricultural Research
Judith Rodin, Former President, The Rockefeller Foundation
Oyun Sanjaasuren, Chair, Global Water Partnership
Lindiwe Majele Sibanda, Vice President for Country Support, Policy and Delivery, Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa
Feike Sijbesma, Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Managing Board, Royal DSM
Rajiv Shah, President, The Rockefeller Foundation
Andrew Steer, President and Chief Executive Officer, World Resources Institute
Achim Steiner, Administrator, United Nations Development Programme
Tristram Stuart, Founder, Feedback
Rhea Suh, President, Natural Resources Defense Council
Rhoda Peace Tumusiime, Former Commissioner for Rural Economy and Agriculture, The African Union
Sunny Verghese, Co-Founder, Group Managing Director & Chief Executive Officer, Olam International
Tom Vilsack, Former Secretary, U.S. Department of Agriculture
Senzeni Zokwana, Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Republic of South Africa
 For further information, please contact:
Lee Green, The Consumer Goods Forum, l.green@theconsumergoodsforum.com 
Lauren Zelin, World Resources Institute, +1 202-729-7736, lzelin@wri.org 
Jillian Holzer, World Resources Institute, +1 202-729-7754, jholzer@wri.org       

As a leading multinational retailer, with more than 345,000 colleagues, we aim to serve customers every day with affordable, healthy and sustainable food – to help them enjoy a better quality of life and an easier way of living.

 Tesco 

Kellogg

Walmart Inc. is an American multinational retail corporation that operates a chain of hypermarkets, discount department stores, and grocery stores from the United States, headquartered in Bentonville, Arkansas.

Walmart 

Consumer Goods Forum

Campbell Soup

Bimbo

Pick n Pay

Nestlé

Carrefour is a French multinational retail and wholesaling corporation headquartered in Massy, France. The eighth-largest retailer in the world by revenue, it operates a chain of hypermarkets, groceries stores and convenience stores, which as of December 2021, comprises its 13,894 stores in over 30 countries.

Carrefour

Major food producers and retailers such as Tesco, Kellogg, Walmart, Campbell Soup, Bimbo, Pick n Pay, Nestlé, Carrefour and Unilever committed to the Consumer Goods Forum and Champions 12.3's call to simplify date labels and reduce food waste by 2020. The call asks for 1) only one label to be placed on food products at a time 2) use expiration dates for perishable items (for example, a 'Use by' label) or use a food quality indicator for non-perishable items (for example, a 'Best if used by' label) and 3) greater consumer education to better understand what date labels mean. [1] A study carried out by the European Commission in 2018 estimates that up to 10% of the 88 million tonnes of food waste generated annually in the EU are linked to date marking. [2]