Asked by: Martyn Day (Scottish National Party - Linlithgow and East Falkirk)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will take steps to provide additional financial support to foodbanks in winter 2023-2024.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
The Government does not have any role in the operation of foodbanks. Foodbanks are independent, charitable organisations which bring people in local communities together to support one another. This is a great example of the generosity of spirit of communities across the country.
The Government is providing over £100 million of support for charities and community organisations in England to support the impacts of the increase in cost of living. This funding is supporting charities and community organisations right now through the £76 million Community Organisations Cost of Living Fund. This fund is awarding funding to frontline organisations supporting vulnerable households, including those which deliver food.
The second strand of the package, the £25.5 million VCSE Energy Efficiency Scheme, was opened in December 2023. This scheme will support frontline charities, community organisations and social enterprises across England to improve energy efficiency and sustainability.
The scheme has two main components:
Organisations can first apply for an Independent Energy Assessment. Having completed the IEA, they can then apply, if they are eligible, for a capital grant between £2,000 and £150,000 to install capital energy measures. Applications for IEAs opened in December 2023 and applications for capital funding will be open through three rounds, starting from the second half of January 2024. All capital projects will need to be completed by March 2025.
Taken together, total support over 2022/23-2024/25 to help households with the high cost of living amounts to £104 billion – an average of £3,700 per UK household.
Asked by: Martyn Day (Scottish National Party - Linlithgow and East Falkirk)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she has made an estimate of the potential financial savings for every £1 invested by businesses in food waste reduction.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
This is a devolved matter and the information provided therefore relates to England only.
Research has shown that for every £1 invested by businesses on food waste reduction, half saw a 14-fold or greater return on investment. We support retailers and food businesses to take action on food waste. We fund the Courtauld 2030 Commitment, a voluntary agreement with industry managed by WRAP. Action through Courtauld includes working with businesses to measure and reduce food waste through the Food Waste Reduction Roadmap, helping them to take targeted action in their own operations and supply chains.
The Business Case for Reducing Food Loss and Waste | WRAP
Asked by: Martyn Day (Scottish National Party - Linlithgow and East Falkirk)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of introducing mandatory food waste reporting in the context of helping the UK to meet its target to halve food waste by 2030.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
This is a devolved matter and the information provided therefore relates to England only.
The Government is fully committed to meeting the UN Sustainable Development Goal 12.3 target, which seeks to halve global food waste at consumer and retail levels by 2030. We support the Courtauld Commitment 2030 which works for a more sustainable supply chain tackling food waste, reducing GHG emissions and water use. The new phase of commitments, Courtauld 2030, includes an updated target of a 50% per capita reduction in food waste by 2030 against the UK’s 2007 baseline.
The Government consulted on options to improve reporting of food waste volumes by large businesses in England. As set out in our published response to the consultation, the Government has decided to enhance the voluntary approach to food waste reporting. Around a third of large food businesses already provide evidence to WRAP on their food waste and we propose to increase this number.
A regulatory approach has greater total costs to businesses and the public sector than the voluntary approach and is not considered suitable at this time, when any additional costs may be passed on to consumers.
Asked by: Martyn Day (Scottish National Party - Linlithgow and East Falkirk)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of introducing legislation to set food waste targets within the food supply chain.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
This is a devolved matter and the information provided therefore relates to England only.
The Government is fully committed to meeting the UN Sustainable Development Goal 12.3 target, which seeks to halve global food waste at consumer and retail levels by 2030. We support the Courtauld Commitment 2030 which works for a more sustainable supply chain tackling food waste, reducing GHG emissions and water use. The new phase of commitments, Courtauld 2030, includes an updated target of a 50% per capita reduction in food waste by 2030 against the UK’s 2007 baseline.
The Government consulted on options to improve reporting of food waste volumes by large businesses in England. As set out in our published response to the consultation, the Government has decided to enhance the voluntary approach to food waste reporting. Around a third of large food businesses already provide evidence to WRAP on their food waste and we propose to increase this number.
A regulatory approach has greater total costs to businesses and the public sector than the voluntary approach and is not considered suitable at this time, when any additional costs may be passed on to consumers.
Asked by: Martyn Day (Scottish National Party - Linlithgow and East Falkirk)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will make it her policy to encourage unsold food in the retail space to be redirected to (a) food banks and (b) food security organisations.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
This is a devolved matter and the information provided therefore relates to England only.
The safe and speedy redistribution of surplus food is a Government priority. The Food and Drink Waste Hierarchy includes the expectation that all businesses prioritise surplus redistribution before disposal. Government works closely with businesses through our delivery partner the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) to overcome any barriers to this requirement. This includes the development of guidance and best practice through a sector wide working group, and support for the Target Measure Act (TMA) approach to understanding and acting on food waste in supply chains, including the redistribution of any surplus should it arise.
Since 2018, Defra funding of nearly £13m has supported both large and small redistribution organisations across the country to make sure more surplus food gets to charities.
Asked by: Martyn Day (Scottish National Party - Linlithgow and East Falkirk)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the implications for her Department's net-zero policies of not introducing new legislation on food waste.
Answered by Rebecca Pow - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Through powers in the Environment Act 2021, we will introduce separate food waste collections from all households and businesses. This policy is key in our Net Zero ambitions through helping us achieve the near elimination of biodegradable municipal waste to landfill from 2028.
We are working to publish the government response to our 2021 consultation on Consistency in recycling as soon as possible. Alongside regulations we will publish a final impact assessment which will outline the net-zero benefits of the policy.
In terms of food waste prevention, the Net Zero Strategy re-iterates the government’s commitment to meet the UN Sustainable Development Goal 12.3 target, to halve global food waste per capita by 2030.
Asked by: Martyn Day (Scottish National Party - Linlithgow and East Falkirk)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 10 March 2023 to Question 158986 on Animal Welfare: Fish Farming, what discussions she has had with (a) Cabinet colleagues and (b) relevant stakeholders on the recommendations of the Animal Welfare Committee's Opinion on the Welfare of Farmed Fish at the Time of Killing 2023.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
A range of topics are discussed with Cabinet colleagues but such discussions are confidential.
Defra officials will engage with relevant stakeholders to discuss the recommendations in the Animal Welfare Committee’s report once it is published.
Asked by: Martyn Day (Scottish National Party - Linlithgow and East Falkirk)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 5 June 2023 to Question 186764 on Bracken, when she plans to take a decision on the application for emergency authorisation of the use of Asulox.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
As stated in PQ 186764, a decision on the emergency authorisation for the use of Asulox will be made as soon as possible.
Asked by: Martyn Day (Scottish National Party - Linlithgow and East Falkirk)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 8 July 2022 to Question 28455 on Bracken: Weedkillers, whether her Department has put control measures in place to help protect (a) grazing land and (b) sensitive habitats from bracken in 2023.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
An application for emergency authorisation of the use of Asulox as bracken control for the summer period of 2023 has been received. This application is being considered and decisions on whether to grant emergency authorisation in each of England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales will be made as soon as possible.
Asked by: Martyn Day (Scottish National Party - Linlithgow and East Falkirk)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment she has made of the level of risk to human health of antimicrobial-resistant superbugs originating from industrial farms.
Answered by Mark Spencer - Minister of State (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs)
Resistant bacteria and/or resistance genes can transfer between people and animals in both directions. The Veterinary Medicines Directorate, along with other governmental partners, conducts two surveillance schemes for AMR in animals, including regular monitoring of AMR in major food-producing species: pigs and poultry. The results of these surveillance schemes are published annually in the UK Veterinary Antibiotic Resistance and Sales and Surveillance Report.
Since 2014, the UK has reduced sales of veterinary antibiotics by 55% since 2014, and over this same period the UK have seen overall trend of decreasing antimicrobial resistance in bacteria from animals. The UK has a cross-government contingency plan in place which acts as an early warning system for resistant bacteria found in animals with potential risk to animal and public health.