Sustainability
Günter Havlena / pixelio.de 
BELGIUM, Brussels. Led by the UK’s House of Lords’ EU Committee, 16 national parliaments wrote to Juncker urging a strategic approach to food waste in Europe as part of a new Circular Economy waste reduction and recycling programme.
The European Union has estimated that 89 mill. t of food are wasted each year in the region, and could rise to 126 mill. t a year by 2020 without specific action.
In December, the Commission dropped a previously proposed Circular Economy package on efficient energy use, which had been supported by 15 firms, including Unilever and environment campaigners.
The previous plan had aimed to improve recycling rates to 70% by 2030, reduce food waste by 30% by 2025, increase packaging waste recycling and reuse, and phase out landfilling for recycling waste. The current average recycling rate across the EU is around 42%, according to a recent Eurostat report.
The letter to Juncker is the first ever ‘Green Card’ sent to the Commission – a means by which national parliaments can combine to make proposals. Until now, national parliaments could register objections to Commission proposals through a process known as subsidiarity, but had no way to combine to put forward initiatives. This Green Card was supported by 16 of the 41 chambers of national parliaments across the EU.
Source: The European Commission