A UK Case Study: What Canada can learn from their consumer food waste policies

Abstract

Food loss and waste (FLW) is a problem in Canada, where consumers and households generate one of the largest sources of avoidable food waste. The United Kingdom (UK) is a leader in addressing consumer food loss and waste through government policies and programs. For Canada to learn from the UK’s consumer food waste policies, I conducted a systematic literature review of the academic and grey literature in addition to government documents. Through my case study, I compared the landscape of the UK’s FLW policies and programs to that of Canada and provided recommendations that could be harnessed by the Government of Canada to address this issue. Recommendations included providing consistent federal funding to national waste reduction councils and organizations, creating monitoring and evaluation frameworks during foundational policy development, linking FLW reductions to climate change ambitions and investing in behavioural science research. KEYWORDS: UK, Canada, food loss and waste (FLW), consumer behaviour, circular economy, public policy and programs