Wednesday, November 03, 2021
When the shelf life has expired
Grocery discounts are simplified
There will soon be more food on supermarket shelves that is close to its expiration date. Minister Klöckner is simplifying sales so that dealers don’t throw away as much. Instead of printing new price tags, the stamp “Special price – 30 percent cheaper” is sufficient.
In the future, supermarkets will be able to offer products that are about to expire at special prices more easily so that they do not have to be thrown away. This provides for a new regulation from May 2022, as the Federal Ministry of Food announced after a corresponding cabinet decision. Stores no longer have to set a new total price and create a new price tag, but can only attach a sticker such as “30 percent cheaper” to the packaging, for example.
However, it must be made clear to consumers that the goods are intended for immediate consumption and not suitable for stockpiling, explained the ministry. The new regulation is a component of the strategy against food waste by department head Julia Klöckner. It provides more information, research funding and a range of voluntary activities. This includes agreed targets for the various areas such as gastronomy and retail.
The entire supply chain should throw away less
According to the ministry, the problem of food waste is being addressed comprehensively for the first time. The entire food supply chain is held responsible for developing and implementing measures to reduce this – from agriculture, processing, retail and out-of-home catering to the consumer.
According to data for 2015, almost twelve million tons of food end up in the garbage every year – private households account for a good half. According to the Berlin consumer center, around 75 kilos of food per capita are disposed of each year in Germany. It is estimated that half of this could be avoided – for example because dairy products in particular are still edible despite the best-before date being exceeded. The government’s goal is to cut food waste in half by 2030.