FRANCE

FRANCE - SUMMARY OF POLICIES AND LEGISLATION FOR FOOD WASTE PREVENTION AND REDUCTION

Waste management legislation in France is decentralised.  The Grenelle Law, the national legislation for waste management (which transposes the EU Waste Framework Directive) is applied at the regional and local level through waste prevention and reduction plans. It imposes targets on the quantity of separated bio-waste at the source and treated organically thorough anaerobic digestion. France furthermore has a National Pact Against Food Waste that aims at reducing food waste in half by 2025, along with the French National Waste Prevention Programme which - in line with the National Pact against Food Waste - focuses on food waste prevention. It also aims at reinforcing the fight against food waste in the restaurant/catering/cantine sector by introducing special provisions in regards to supply.

France also has a number of local reduction plans including the Regional Waste Reduction Plan in Ile-de-France, which focuses on the prevention of all waste generated across the region. This plan is carried out regardless of the type of producer (households, businesses, public services, etc…), the type of waste (inert, non-hazardous, dangerous). Moreover, the Local Waste Reduction Plan set goal to reduce household waste by 7% by 2016.

This country is currently implementing laws impacting on food donations; specifically the Ministerial Decree of 21 December 2009 which sets temperature and hygiene requirements for food donated in restaurants. The majority of warm meals cannot be redistributed and it is not allowed to reheat them in order to donate. Warm meals need to be mantained at a temperature higher than 63 degrees C in order to be donated.

France has launched the digital campaign Manger c’est bien, jeter ça craint! (Eating is great, throwing away is terrible!)  that features fun posters with catchy messages to raise awareness on how to interpret expiry dates and the aesthetics of food.

Supermarkets are also active in France. Intermarchè has launched The Inglorious Fruits and Vegetables food waste reduction campaign encouraging consumers to buy ugly fruits and vegetables.
The overarching goal of the French food waste policy-mix is to reduce the amount of food waste produced on a whole. Priority is given to the management of resources.

Figure 1.  France’s policy mix at December 2014
 

Behavioural changes are central to reducing the environmental, social and economic consequences which arise from unnecessary food waste. Among the eleven measures outlined in the National Pact to foster civic awareness and encourage responsible habits, education about food waste in agricultural high schools and hotel industry training colleges has a primary role.

Download the full country report and send us your comments.

REFERENCES

A) FRANCE’S NATIONAL PLAN/STRATEGY ON FOOD WASTE REDUCTION
National Pact Against Food Waste 2013 (in French)
Available from: http://alimentation.gouv.fr/pacte-national-lutte-antigaspillage

The French National waste prevention plan 2014-2020 (in French)
Available from:
http://www.developpement-durable.gouv.fr/IMG/pdf/Programme_national_prevention_dechets_2014-2020.pdf
http://draaf.rhone-alpes.agriculture.gouv.fr/IMG/pdf/resultats_enquete_Dbag_OK_cle0d4133.pdf

The Regional Waste Reduction Plan in Ile-de-France (in French)
Available from:
http://www.ordif.com/public/fiche/predif-plan-de-reduction-des-dechets-d%E2%80%99ile-de-france.html?rub=14351&id=15483

The Local Waste Reduction Plan (in French)
Available from: http://ile-de-france.ademe.fr/-Les-Programmes-Locaux-de-.html

B) MARKET-BASED INSTRUMENTS
Law n°98-1266 of the 30th of December 1998 on finances for 1999
Available from: http://legifrance.gouv.fr/affichTexte.do?cidTexte=JORFTEXT000000209044

Article 238 bis of the General Tax Code
Available from:
http://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/affichCodeArticle.do?idArticle=LEGIARTI000021658127&cidTexte=LEGITEXT000006069577

C) REGULATORY INSTRUMENT OR REGULATIONS TRADING SCHEME
Law n°2010-798 of the 12th of July 2010 regarding the national engagement for the environment (Grenelle 2)
Available from: http://www.legifrance.gouv.fr/affichTexte.do?cidTexte=JORFTEXT000022470434

The Ministerial Decree of 21 December 2009 and the amended note EB / SDSSA / N2011-8117 service May 23, 2011
Available from: http://agriculture.gouv.fr/IMG/pdf/DGALN20128054Z_cle878738.pdf

D) VOLUNTARY AGREEMENT
Food waste actors club (in French)
Available from:
http://www.developpement-durable.gouv.fr/IMG/pdf/Programme_national_prevention_dechets_2014-2020.pdf

E) RESEARCH AND TECHNICAL REPORTS
Ministry of Ecology, Sustainable Development and Energy (2012), Réduction du gaspillage alimentaire: État des lieux et pistes d'action  (Food waste reduction: Status and courses of action) (in French).
Available here

ADEME (2013), Etude de Préfiguration du Plan National de Prévention des déchets en France (Foreshadowing Study of the National Waste Prevention Plan in France) (in French).
Available from :
Etude_prefiguration_plan_prevention_rapport_final_phase_1_bilan.pdf

ADEME (2014), Opération foyers témoins pour estimer les impacts du gaspillage alimentaire des ménages (Operation to estimate the impacts of household food waste) (in French).
Available here

Ministry of Agriculture and Food (2011), Pertes et Gaspillages Alimentaires, Marges de manoeuvre et verrous au stade de la remise directe au consommateur (distribution et restauration) et en restauration collective (Food Losses and Waste, operating margins and locks at the stage of direct delivery to the consumer (retail and catering) (in French).
Available from:
http://alimentation.gouv.fr/IMG/pdf/Pertes-gaspillages_RAPPORT270112_cle02c35d.pdf

Ministry of Agriculture and Food, Etude PIPAME, Les innovations technologiques, leviers de réduction du gaspillage dans le secteur agroalimentaire (Technological innovations , waste reduction levers in the food sector) (in French).
Available from: http://agriculture.gouv.fr/pipame-innovations-gaspillage-agroalimentaire

F) COMMUNICATION AND CAMPAIGNS
Manger c’est bien, jeter ça craint! (Eating is great, throwing away is terrible!) (in French)
Available from:  http://alimentation.gouv.fr/manger-c-est-bien-jeter-ca-craint

Inglorious Fruits and Vegetables (in French)
Available from:
https://www.intermarche.com/home/canal-intermarche/developpement-durable/legumes-moches--goutes-et-approu.html
http://www.lesgueulescassees.org/

G) PROJECTS AND OTHER MEASURES
Among the eleven measures have been outlined in the National Pact to foster civic awareness and encourage responsible habits, education about food waste in agricultural high schools and hotel industry training colleges has a primary role.
Available from: http://www.frenchfoodintheus.org/spip.php?article4175

Ministère de l’agriculture, Bourse aux dons- Exchange internet platform managed by the ministry to get connected suppliers and food aid associations (in French)
Available from: http://alimentation.gouv.fr/bourse-aux-dons

Ademe – Optigede: tools to help local bodies, catering companies and associations reduce their food waste (in French)
Available from: http://optigede.ademe.fr/gaspillage-alimentaire-0

All links cited in the references have been accessed for the last time on October 27, 2015