Around the world, governments, activist organizations, and industry are tackling food waste issues. But without the positive network efforts of collaboration and coordination, progress is slowed. To have a bigger impact, a transformational shift is necessary. Â Cooperating across sectors, leveraging off each other’s actions, and identifying collective opportunities can provide fertile ground for big changes. Â The National Zero Waste Council’s Food Waste Reduction Strategy is one such example. It’s a collaborative, national, multi-year strategy to reduce food waste using policy change, innovation, and business and consumer engagement. It’s just one of the approaches our panelists will showcase at the 2017 Metro Vancouver Zero Waste Conference.
NZWC Strategy Delivers Roadmap
At the 2017 Metro Vancouver Zero Waste Conference afternoon session on food waste, the NZWC Food Waste Reduction Strategy and other examples of cross-sector collaboration from Europe, the UK, and the U.S. will be examined. Our panel’s perspective, from the front lines of the war on food waste, by the people who are leading the fight, will offer insights into successful food waste reduction efforts achieved on a large scale:
Shay EliazShay Eliaz is a Principal with Monitor Deloitte, Deloitte Consulting’s Strategy practice. He is the Innovation leader for Deloitte’s Manufacturing Practice and advises clients globally, helping them respond to the myriad of complex growth and innovation challenges that face them. Shay also served as the Project Advisor for the World Economic Forum’s Future of Food and Agriculture. In a January 2016 article for the World Economic Forum he notes:
“These challenges are complex and increasingly interconnected, driven by the actions and interactions of many diverse stakeholders. To solve these problems, we must move beyond our silos and take an “ecosystem approach†to our food systems which maximizes for the whole rather than an individual part… The need for new approaches is clear, but the innovation and willingness to collaborate that I have seen through these partnerships suggests we can (and should) address these challenges collectively.”
We are looking forward to hearing from Shay about the World Economic Forum’s New Vision for Agriculture, its goal of answering the question ‘how will we nutritiously and sustainably feed a global population of 8.5 billion people by 2030?’, and the role collaboration can play in finding the answers.
Claire Kneller
Senior Business Development Manager, WRAP UK
Claire Kneller works on the development and delivery of WRAP’s international strategy. As Head of International Business Development, she leads on identifying opportunities, creating new and lasting partnerships with in-country organisations, governments and other partners, designing WRAP’s support programmes with those partners and across WRAP’s functions and providing key account management and technical delivery.
Claire has been with WRAP for over 11 years, in that time she has delivered a number of high profile programmes including: a £20M grant support program for new composting and anaerobic digestion facilities; designing and implementing a £10M loan fund for innovative sustainability projects including assessing applications and managing the loan book and financial partners and; co-delivering multiple small, medium and large scale projects for international partners ranging from Apple to the UN. Claire now works with partners across the world from Canada and Australia to South Africa & Mexico. Her experience tackling food waste at the international level will provide important insights into the challenges of food waste on a global scale.
Malcolm Brodie
Chair, Metro Vancouver Zero Waste Committee and Chair, National Zero Waste Council
Malcolm Brodie has been the Chair of the National Zero Waste Council since its inception in October 2013. He will be bringing that experience, along with more than two decades of experience in municipal politics as a councillor and mayor of Richmond, BC, along with his work as Chair of the Metro Vancouver Zero Waste Committee, to the conference afternoon session on food waste. Expect to gain a better understanding of food waste issues from the perspective of a policy maker and learn how the National Zero Waste Council is working to foster national collaborations – with tools such as the National Food Waste Reduction Strategy.
Cher Mereweather
Executive Director, Provision Coalition
Cher Mereweather is one of Canada’s leaders in food manufacturing sustainability. As executive director of Provision Coalition, an organization she founded with  the country’s top food and beverage professional associations, she works directly with manufacturers to transform their business culture and operations. An advocate for change and a passionate spokesperson, Mereweather has dedicated her career to advancing sustainability concepts within the Canadian food industry and sustainability solutions at the firm level. Most recently, she has sharpened Provision’s focus on the reduction of food loss and waste, developing innovative technologies and online tools that will modernize facility processing.
Chris Cochran
Executive Director, ReFED
Chris Cochran is the executive director of ReFED, the leading organization devoted to reducing U.S. food waste at scale. Previously, Chris was the Senior Manager of Sustainability at Walmart where he developed a farm-to-consumer view of food waste while leading sustainability for Walmart’s global produce business. Chris’s experience with tackling food waste from multiple points in the value chain helps ReFED bring a systems approach to food waste solutions and will be a vital perspective for this discussion of big-picture issues that must be addressed to eliminate food waste.
Collaborative Efforts Equal Results
The fight against food waste calls for broad collaboration and better coordination of initiatives affecting the production and consumption of food. A daunting task with so many players and different interests involved. Made more difficult by fast-changing technologies, shifting consumer preferences, and legislation that varies across markets. From technology to governance, using levers in policy or directing capital investment, successfully reducing food waste will require cooperation across sectors, industries, and even national borders.
Understand Circular Economy Opportunities
Substantive efforts to combat food waste are now de rigeur for any organization with sustainability in their mandate. From agriculture to packaging, complex political and market realities only increase the challenge.  It demands a shift in public thinking and expectations. The expert advice and insights from the industry leaders on this panel will give attendees an unparalleled perspective, offering a better understanding from which to employ effective decision-making.
Register Today
The shift to zero waste and circular economy principles will have impacts in all aspect of our lives. To succeed in the face of this massive, fast-approaching change, you need to stay informed. Metro Vancouver’s 2017 Zero Waste Conference is the place to get the insights you can use to adapt – from speakers such as scientist and retired NASA astronaut Dr. Cady Coleman and all the rest of our industry-leading panelists and presenters. This year’s theme is A Circular Economy Within Reach. The conference will be held on November 1, 2017 at the Vancouver Convention Centre. Register Now
Subscribe to this blog (sign up window at right) and stay up to date as we finalize an exciting list of speakers, panels, and presentations.  Metro Vancouver’s 2017 Zero Waste Conference is an event you don’t want to miss. We look forward to seeing you!