In a remarkable move, supermarkets in France have been banned from throwing away or spoiling unsold food by law.
Supermarkets will now have to donate any leftover items to needy charities and food banks, reports the Guardian.
The move, which was first passed by the French Parliament in May 2015, has now finally been signed into law and with this, France has become the first country in the world to pass such a law.
A report by Gizmodo says that each year, the French throw out 7.1 million tons of food and from this total, 67 percent is tossed by the end consumer, 15 percent by restaurants, and 11 percent by grocery stores.
Considering the statistics, this new law can have far-reaching effects.
As per a report by Daily Mail, these are the new rules that will entail:
- Super owners will be now be expected to sign a donation contract, which will outline how the store will give leftover food to charities.
- The policy will be further implemented with the threat of fines, up to €75,000 (£53,000), or even a jail sentence for those who disobey the rules.
- The anti-food wastage rule will only affect supermarkets of the size of 400 sq metres (4,305 sq ft).
This law was voted unanimously by the French senate on Wednesday after a petition was launched by Courbevoie councillor Arash Derambarsh.
He said: “The next step is to ask the president, François Hollande, to put pressure on Jean-Claude Juncker and to extend this law to the whole of the EU.
“This battle is only just beginning. We now have to fight food waste in restaurants, bakeries, school canteens and company canteens,” he said.
With the world grappling with hunger crisis, do you think other countries should follow suit?