It would be hard to find cheaper food in Oslo than that sold at Best Før supermarket. Established by Lentusgruppen supermarket chain, the first of its kind, Best Før sell the stuff other stores and suppliers throw away. A large sign informs customers of the slightly different nature of the food down their aisles and in the chillers, which includes chicken fillets frozen a couple of days before going off.
Other than Best Før, there is a range of innovations to curb food waste in Norway as part of its efforts to tackle climate change. A platform called bestfør.no, helps supermarkets identify food at risk of becoming inedible through a digital record of products’ sell-by dates. A new app, foodlist, encourages people to take photographs of food in stores coming to the end of its shelf life. A company called SNÅL frukt & grøn has offered customers a 30% discount when they purchase vegetables and eggs that are strangely shaped or discoloured.
The first initiatives to tackle food waste started in 2010 and by 2015, edible food waste had been reduced by 12% per person, having risen for the previous five years.
The government is insisting that businesses and consumers reduce their waste by 15% by 2020 compared with 2015 levels, and secure a 30% reduction by 2025 to achieve the 50% goal by 2030 set by United Nations (UN).
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Source: The Guardian, 17 August 2017