Tech solutions for cutting food waste urged

The 2025 International Conference on Reducing Food Loss and Waste concluded on Saturday in Jinan, Shandong province, with experts, policymakers, and industry leaders calling for global cooperation and technological innovation to promote food security and reduce waste across the supply chain.

The three-day conference, held from July 24 to 26, was co-hosted by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, the National Food and Strategic Reserves Administration, and the Shandong provincial government.

Themed Reducing Food Loss and Waste: Tech Innovation and Global Action for a Food-Secure World, the event attracted around 300 participants from government, business, and academia both in China and abroad.

Peng Qinghua, vice-chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, China's top legislature, attended the opening ceremony and delivered remarks.

Peng emphasized the need to deepen reform and build public awareness around the idea that reducing food loss is equal to increasing production. He called for stronger public education to transform food conservation awareness into conscious action.

Zhang Zhili, vice-minister of agriculture and rural affairs, said the ministry has implemented targeted strategies across the agricultural supply chain — from field to table.

In 2024, the mechanical harvest loss rates for wheat were 0.93 percent, rice 1.76 percent and corn 2.06 percent, he said. Losses related to pests and diseases were kept under 5 percent, while grain and oil processing losses were reduced to below 1 percent.

"The ministry is working to establish a full-chain food loss reduction system that spans production, storage, distribution and consumption," Zhang said.

Lin Wu, Party secretary of Shandong province, said as a major agricultural province and a cradle of traditional Chinese farming civilization, Shandong plays a crucial role in China's food production.

In recent years, the province has accelerated the construction of a food-saving system to ensure food security, Lin said. He outlined the province's key initiatives, including boosting yields, improving logistics infrastructure, and deepening processing technologies.

Qin Yuyun, deputy director of the National Food and Strategic Reserves Administration, highlighted efforts to build high-standard grain warehouses, expand the use of green storage technologies, and foster innovation-driven practices.

The conference also featured three forums, as well as exhibitions showcasing food loss reduction technologies, smart agricultural machinery, and specialty agricultural products. Key documents, such as a South-South cooperation action plan on reducing grain loss, were released during the conference.