Despite the growing attention from the academic world, civil society and policy makers, the debate on food waste is still affected by a lack of a consensus over its definition, scope boundaries and drivers that lead to its generation and by the lack of common quantification and reporting methods along the food supply chain. Moreover, as policies and policy proposals are emerging, there is a greater need to establish criteria to be used for the evaluation of their impact and effectiveness. Although efforts are made on European and Member State (MS) level to develop dedicated food waste policy, they could benefit from a sound knowledge base and an integrated, comprehensive approach. What actions could be undertaken to improve and coordinate the policy effort to address food waste?
The findings of the EU funded FUSIONS project suggest a number of key recommendations concerning policies, practices and effective approaches towards food waste prevention and reduction in the EU-28, on EC and MS level. These recommendations can support the development and implementation of a common European food waste policy framework on food waste prevention in the rural context.