Inspiring More Sustainability (IMS) has launched a campaign to reduce food waste in corporate catering in the Kirchberg region, in partnership with Sodexo using four "test restaurants” who have volunteered for the challenge in the hope of educating employees and employers.

According to a study carried out in Luxembourg in 2016, 68,000 tonnes of waste and 31,000 tonnes of food waste are recorded each year in the Grand Duchy. If this tendency to over-consume and spoil is real, IMS has decided to tackle the issue by going directly to the heart of the problem within its main target, corporate restaurants which account for as much as 14% of food waste in Luxembourg. 

Four companies have agreed to take on the challenge to try to reduce their food wastage in April, namely The European Investment Bank, BGL BNP Paribas, RTL and the European Convention Center Luxembourg will see how they do over the month. 

These actions are part of the "Food Waste Zero" campaign, developed by IMS and in close collaboration with Sodexo.

Throughout April, IMS will support the evolution of food returns in the plateaus of more than 4,000 employees in Kirchberg. The first phase came to fruition last week and consisted of weighing discarded foodstuffs from cooking and returning dishes, before even informing the daily users of the existence of this campaign. 

In the second step, the objective is to encourage Sodexo staff to engage more with employees in order to ensure portions are correct, and to collect their feedback. 

Finally, a comparative weighing will be carried out, in the hope of a significant reduction in the percentage of foods that end up in the garbage.