John Dalli, the Health Commissioner, speaking on European Food Safety Day on 15 September said 89 million tonnes of food are wasted in Europe every year, and that 61% of this waste could have been avoided by better management. He also said he wanted to raise awareness of the unacceptable amounts of food packaging waste. Is it really necessary to wrap a cucumber in plastic? Or to wrap four apples together? At the same time, the Commission published a Q&A on food waste minimisation and food packaging optimisation. This says that "well designed food packaging can help consumers buy the right amount of food ├ it can also help consumers keep what they buy at its best through re-closable packs, new vacuum and shrink wrap packaging that extends shelf life."
