Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with reference to her Department’s Greening Government Commitments for 2021-25, how many tonnes of food waste were produced from her Departmental estate in Financial Year (a) 2021-22 and (b) 2022-23 up to 31 December 2022.

In line with the Greening Government Commitments (GGC), Defra has committed to measure and report on food waste, for estates with over 50 full-time equivalent staff and/or over 500m2 floor area offering a food service.

The requested information for 2021-2022 will be published in the GGC Annual Report for 2021-2022, due later this year. The data for April 1st 2022 to December 31st 2022 will be published in the Annual Report covering 2022-2023.

GGC annual reporting is delayed due to Covid-19 impacts, but the Government remains committed to reducing the environmental impact of its estate and operations.

Defra includes sustainability clauses in its contracts around food quality, food miles and reducing waste.

It is also worth noting that food waste is a function of the number of staff we have and how many are using our offices.