Food Loss & Waste Prevention

Best practices in the dairy chain

The dairy sector is interlinked with other sectors, as dairy cows can eat some of the by-products from other sectors, upgrading inedible resources (e.g., by-products from the production of grains, sugar, rapeseed oil, beer, juice, biofuels, etc.), and our by-products are used as feed and biomaterials for other sectors.

How is the EU dairy sector helping? By cooperating with supply chain partners, NGOs and government bodies, we support efforts to reduce food waste through practical initiatives that encourage innovation and smarter use of resources. 

Food wastage along the value chain is reduced through improving efficiency at dairy sites and in logistics. Finally, moving volumes from incineration and biogas to biomaterial reprocessing and feed is also a mitigation option.

Read our factsheet about preventing food loss and waste prevention in the dairy chain

Dairy products provide high-value nutrition for humans – and the dairy industry wants to further improve this value to consumers and contribute to food security worldwide.

With almost one-third of all food produced globally being lost – food loss and waste continue to be an essential component of the EU’s sustainability objectives. This has also translated into the dairy sector’s continuous efforts and achievements in reducing food losses and waste, not only during the production cycles but also at consumer level, to accelerate progress toward halving food waste by 2030.

Whey: a successful story of product revalorisation

The dairy sector has succeeded in transforming whey, once considered a waste product, into a nutritious and highly valuable food product. Whey is a co-product of the cheese-making process that in the past was mainly reused as feed for animals despite being very nutrient rich. Today, whey protein is being used as a high-value protein concentrate for specific human nutrition (sports, infants, the elderly, pregnant women, people with special needs, etc.) in a growing market, and in special cases, for young animal feed.

Visit the European Whey Processors Association to learn more
Examples of actions and initiatives aimed at reducing food waste across the dairy supply chain:

Dairy operators maintain a constant dialogue with farmers to:

1

Further improve their animal health performance, minimising antibiotic use by preventive action.

2

Ensure that more raw materials meet regulatory, commercial and food safety standards, thus helping them to reduce food losses.

3

Alternatively, review standards to identify those that contribute to increasing food loss and waste, where a less restrictive standard could achieve the same goal.

4

Improve production efficiency and create innovative solutions to halve food waste in dairies’ own operations.

5

Strive to achieve zero waste for disposal at our manufacturing sites.

6

Reduction of losses along the supply chain, e.g., companies are also taking initiatives to improve delivery route efficiencies to reduce damaged products.

7

Collaboration with customers to reduce waste by improving efficiency in the system.

With a significant part of food waste taking place at the end of the chain, reducing waste from dairy products requires not only initiatives on the manufacturing side, but also innovative solutions to help consumers reduce waste.

These measures include giving consumers anti-waste tips and tricks; offering different package sizes to match purchases with their needs; providing clearer storage, freezing and preparation instructions; designing packaging that is easy to fold and fully empty; supporting consumer campaigns; and providing guidance on how to maximise the freshness and shelf life of dairy products and make date labels easier for consumers to understand.