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Speaking at today's (December 17) Food Wise Hong Kong Steering Committee First Anniversary Ceremony, the Secretary for the Environment, Mr Wong Kam-sing, said that the Steering Committee had enjoyed a successful first year of operation and launched the Food Wise Hong Kong (FWHK) Campaign with the support and effort of Committee members, relevant sectors and members of the public, bringing a Food Wise culture to the community.
Mr Wong officiated at the ceremony and presented certificates of appreciation to signees of the Food Wise Charter in the FWHK Campaign to commend their support for the campaign.
The ceremony was held at Discovery Park, Tsuen Wan and was attended by more than 120 representatives from different sectors including hotels, food and beverage, property management, shopping malls, women's associations, the education sector, food recycling organisations, green groups and non-governmental organisations. Some were also signees of the Food Wise Charter.
Mr Wong said that around 9 000 tonnes of municipal solid waste are disposed of every day in Hong Kong, of which around 40 per cent is food waste. To tackle our imminent waste problem, the Environment Bureau launched the "Hong Kong: Blueprint for Sustainable Use of Resources 2013-2022"in May this year. While the Government is taking the lead in formulating a comprehensive strategy, everyone, including society as a whole, also needs to share the responsibility, he added.
Regarding the reduction of food waste at source, he said that during its first year the FWHK Steering Committee had successfully launched the FWHK Campaign and promoted the Food Wise culture and waste reduction through various schemes including the Food Wise Charter, the FWHK Ambassador Scheme and a series of promotional and educational activities. These programmes have led to behavioural changes and reduced food waste among various sectors in the society, he said. Mr Wong was glad to see that Big Waster, a character who symbolises food wastage as part of the FWHK Campaign, is gaining popularity and helps to encourage the community and relevant sectors to take proactive action in tackling the food waste problem.
The Food Wise Charter under the FWHK Campaign aims to encourage the relevant sectors to put into practice food waste reduction in their daily operations. To date over 320 organisations have signed the Charter. During today's ceremony, signees of the Charter were presented with certificates of appreciation in recognition of their active participation in food waste reduction. They were encouraged to continue the promotion of good practices in food waste management so as to further reduce the amount of food waste. Also as part of the Campaign, more than 450 Food Wise Ambassadors have received training and assisted in spreading the Food Wise message throughout the community. Mr Wong called on relevant sectors and organisations to sign the Food Wise Charter and members of the public to take part in the Food Wise Ambassador Scheme in a bid to reduce food waste and promote the Food Wise culture.
In addition, stories of food waste reduction were broadcast at the ceremony and Big Waster went on stage with Kevin Tong, a rapper for the theme song featured in a promotional video of the FWHK Campaign, to remind the public to cherish food and reduce food waste.
Other officiating guests included the Permanent Secretary for the Environment/Director of Environmental Protection, Ms Anissa Wong; the Chairperson of the Working Group of Good Practice Guide for the Hotel Sector under the Food Wise Hong Kong Steering Committee, Mr Nicholas Yim; the Chairperson of the Working Group of Good Practice Guide for the Residential Sector, Mr Terence Ng; the Chairperson of the Working Group of Good Practice Guide for the Shopping Mall Sector, Ms Betty Leong; the Chairperson of the Working Group of Good Practice Guide for the Food and Beverage Sector, Ms Catherine Lee; and the Chairperson of the Working Group of the Food Wise Charter Scheme, Dr Chung Shan-shan.
With the approach of Christmas and the New Year, Mr Wong and Big Waster paid a visit to a supermarket and an eatery in the shopping centre to promote the FWHK Campaign. He called on relevant sectors and members of the public to cherish food while celebrating the festival and to donate surplus edible food to food recycling organisations to spread the message of a "food wise and caring community" and to enjoy a green and warm festival. Some supermarkets have already set a good example by signing the Food Wise Charter and arranging the donation of surplus food to food recycling organisations.
Ends/Tuesday, December 17, 2013
Issued at HKT 18:43
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