Food waste is an enormous burden on the global food system, with a third of all food produced globally going to waste. This has a big impact on resource exploitation and world hunger. The EU-funded ZeroW project aims to reduce Food Loss & Waste (FLW) along the food supply chain, contributing to Green Deal goals of halving FLW by 2030 and reaching near-zero FLW by 2050. 

ZeroW will adopt a systemic innovation approach to address the multidimensional issue of FLW. The implementation of diverse innovation actions will be carried out in nine real-life food chains, called Systemic Innovation Living Labs (SILLs). The SILLs are distributed across Europe and focus on FLW reduction from different perspectives (e.g. smart packaging, food banks networks, data-driven production process, ugly food and retail food waste valorization) and with different strategies. A ‘FLW impact trajectory’ will be established to assess the impact of the project and  demonstrate its contribution to Green Deal targets. 

In this project, ICLEI leads on establishing collaborative ecosystems with relevant stakeholders in the EU and beyond. ICLEI is in charge of reaching out, engaging, and interacting with external stakeholders and initiatives, including regular exchanges with European Commission services, and close collaboration with similar projects and initiatives. ICLEI will also contribute to communication and dissemination activities through its various audience engagement platforms, including social media and more.