From September 4 to 6, the largest food industry exhibition in the Baltics, “Riga Food 2025,” took place at the International Exhibition Centre “Ķīpsala,” bringing together 420 companies from more than 30 countries. Within the framework of the LIFE integrated project “Waste to Resources IP,” the association “Zaļā brīvība” also participated in the exhibition with a stand, a masterclass, and a seminar-discussion. The common goal of all activities was to invite people to reflect: what are we already doing to prevent food leftovers from becoming waste? And what more can we do?
Great interest in the topics highlighted at the association “Zaļā brīvība” stand
At the association’s stand, visitors could gain insight into two topics: food waste and the global fair trade brand “Fairtrade.” One survey was dedicated to households, and the other – to the public catering sector. Visitors were offered the opportunity to mark their choices on a poster: “What can you do in your household to avoid throwing food away?” If the visitor represented a catering company: “How to prevent and manage food waste in public catering?”
The three main choices regarding household waste were –
“responsible shopping” – buy only what you know when and how you will use,
“reasonable cooking” – cook only as much as needed so that nothing is left over, and
“smart storage” – store products in the appropriate place, observing the expiry date and the instructions on the packaging.
Less frequently marked options were “friendly sharing” (share with others or donate for animal feed), “thoughtful freezing,” and “use of leftovers” – what you cannot eat, store and prepare other dishes from the leftovers.
Meanwhile, the three most frequently indicated choices regarding the public catering sector, selected by those working in it, were “thoughtful food procurement” – more frequent purchase of local and seasonal products in smaller quantities, “delivery of used cooking oil and fats to a company specializing in their management,” and “use of uneaten cooked food for staff catering.”
Industry representatives discuss food waste reduction
On the second day of the exhibition, September 5, “Zaļā brīvība,” in cooperation with the Latvian Rural Advisory and Training Centre, organized the masterclass “Give Food a Second Chance” with tasting. A discussion “From Inspiration to Experience: HoReCa Professionals on Food Waste Reduction” also took place. The masterclass was led by chef and “Michelin” school graduate Ieva Lācare. She shared her experience of how vegetable peels can be turned into a delicious and spicy snack. Participants had the opportunity to taste the snacks and ask questions.
In the discussion, their views on food waste reduction were shared by Ina Poliščenko, board member of the Latvian Chefs’ Club, ambassador of the environmentally friendly eating challenge “Neapēd zemeslodi” (“Don’t Eat Up the Planet”). Ināra Liepiņa represented the Riga Technical School of Tourism and Creative Industry Preiļi branch, Department of Food Production and Catering Services. The Food and Veterinary Service was represented by Svetlana Aļminoviča-Miļjanoviča, Senior Expert of the Food Distribution Supervision Division. Also participating in the discussion were Svetlana Riškova, founder and board member of the Latvian Chefs’ Club, president of the Bocuse d'Or Latvia Academy, sales manager of SIA Prolux, owner of the sustainable bakery “Remaize,” and gastronomy tourism teacher at the Riga Technical School of Tourism and Creative Industry. The Young Chefs Movement was represented in the discussion by Žanis Raivo Behmanis, chef and supporter of zero-waste cooking initiatives.
The discussion was moderated by Inga Belousa, “Zaļā brīvība” expert on food waste reduction, climate-friendly lifestyle, and education for sustainable development.
Several topics recognized as significant by the participants emerged in the discussion. Special emphasis was placed on the need for planning – so that food is used “from head to tail” or, if it is a vegetable, “from root to leaves.” The importance of staff training and the impact of food packaging on the amount of waste in the industry were also highlighted.
Challenges in the field of food waste reduction
Svetlana Riškova emphasized the importance of persistence, patience, planning, and staff education: “My biggest challenge in my work related to food waste is to be persistent and plan every day without relaxing, to also interest my employees in doing the same as I do.”
This was agreed upon by Ina Poliščenko: “In everyday life, the biggest challenge is to instill in others the love for thinking things through, for the qualitative use of products, and for economic thinking.” She stressed that it is important to implement all this in one’s daily life, not only in the restaurant: “When going to the store, go with a list, because then there will be no impulsive purchases and we will not throw away products.”
Žanis Raivo Behmanis shared his experience that it is often customer choices that motivate sellers to put food in takeaway packaging, even if in a particular context it is not always the best solution – from the point of view of waste prevention. He shared his experience: “Lately, I’ve noticed that we have this big box fetish. It definitely comes from the COVID period, it has been around for quite a long time, and we’ve accepted it as the norm. We could look in another direction and leave that fetish aside.”
Ināra Liepiņa emphasized the importance of patient education: “It is important to teach that waste must be sorted, that food waste must be separated from non-food waste, because many people have the tradition of ‘throwing everything together.’” She also stressed the importance of planning in food waste reduction: “We have an open-type café, people can come in from the street. Students themselves work in the kitchen, so they can see what they have prepared and how their food is in demand. This gives young people the opportunity, already during their studies, to evaluate how to cook food thoughtfully in real life, learning ‘what is left over, why it is left over, how it can be used.’”
Svetlana Aļminoviča-Miļjanoviča, Senior Expert of the Food Distribution Supervision Division of the Food and Veterinary Service: “In my opinion, the biggest challenge for catering companies is to start implementing various measures in practice to reduce waste – both in the kitchen and also to plan their menu. To think and make various necessary changes so that the prepared food is consumed, appropriate raw materials are used, and thus waste is reduced.”
She pointed out that various opportunities for waste reduction are already incorporated into regulations – food that has not been consumed on the day of preparation but is still suitable can be sold to customers at a lower price. The company can also offer it to its employees or donate it. “Since there are opportunities, we encourage you to use them, while ensuring food safety,” said the expert.
Sandija Svarupa, Senior Expert of the LIFE integrated project “Waste to Resources IP” of the Ministry of Climate and Energy, noted: “The value here is that the parties involved in the sector meet each other. Often we each work in our own field, in our own bubble, and we don’t know what is happening in a partner’s company, a competitor’s company, in the industry in general, because we are very busy.”
She emphasized that such events provide an opportunity for industry professionals to meet, exchange experiences and opinions, and also share contacts in order to create joint initiatives in the future. Similar thoughts were expressed by the discussion participants at the end of the event. Hopefully, in the near future we will be able to say – the most capable professionals in the industry are purposefully moving towards sustainability and cooperation.
Within the framework of the project “Waste to Resources IP,” various activities are being implemented to carry out the Waste Management State Plan 2021–2028, including determining the amount of food waste in Latvia and initiatives for the reduction and prevention of food waste in various stages of the food supply chain.
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