WASTEWISE results at the network Rete Italiana Politiche Locali del Cibo

On 6 February 2026, the WASTEWISE partners Claudia Giordano, from LUKE, and Luca Falasconi, from UNIBO, presented their results at the annual meeting of the network Rete Italiana Politiche Locali del Cibo (Italian Network for Local Food Policies), held in Perugia. From Claudia’s perspective, this meeting “is unique in Italy: a truly interdisciplinary and multi-actor space where farmers’ markets, GALs, municipalities, local institutions, and researchers from all disciplines meet and work together”.

In their intervention, the section regarding Italy of the multilevel policies on food waste led by Espigoladors was presented, which analysed across different European countries the National Regulatory Frameworks for food waste, including links to energy, climate, and supply-chain management. The aim of this presentation was to show “the available cases of good practices from local authorities in Italy. These practices have been mapped at different moments by different entities, but we knew for sure that this mapping could be enhanced and updated. This mapping is important because the EU Waste Directive 2025 requires Member States to reduce food waste mandatorily. In the long term, this may even expose countries to infringement procedures if reductions are not achieved”, explains Claudia.

“We therefore need a very concrete dialogue with those implementing food waste policies on the ground. And this work must be coordinated with national authorities, because food waste reduction is not only about donations or consumers – it must also involve processing companies and their efforts to reduce edible waste during production”, she concluded.