A party-list lawmaker on Wednesday urged the public to be mindful of food consumption and avoid waste during the holidays.

AAMBIS-OWA Rep. Sharon Garin said with the coronavirus pandemic still choking supply chains, the food and nutrition security of the country remains to be under threat.

She said it is incumbent upon every Filipino to ensure that no food goes to waste.

Citing the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations, Garin said food wastage accounts for 8 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions.

Garin added that on top of this, hunger and undernutrition continue to plague around 690 million people in the last five years.

She highlighted the need to address the country’s lack of a system when it comes to addressing food waste.

She said for instance, food items continue to end up in dumpsites instead of being repurposed as livestock feed which can help Filipino farmers.

House Bill 7956, otherwise known as the Food Surplus Reduction Act, was approved on third and final reading last week.

The bill prescribes specific steps on edible food surplus distribution, as well as the formulation of a food-related business surplus reduction strategy to properly manage the redistribution and inspection of food still fit for human consumption.

Local government units shall also be required to enter into a contract with waste management and recycling enterprises to recycle inedible food waste into fertilizer or compost, livestock feed, or sources of biofuel and facilitate the distribution of fertilizer or compost to farms and community gardening associations.

It seeks to establish the linkages between food businesses, food banks, and local government units to create a community-based food distribution system for the food-insecure.

Guidelines and standards shall be provided for the collection, storage, and distribution of edible food donated to food banks.

A self-sufficiency program shall be created that will provide skills training in managing food banks and livelihood programs to avoid the dependence on donations solely. (PNA)