National food waste reduction programme

Funding from the Programme supports initiatives across the food supply chain, reducing waste from households, food production, hospitality and other businesses.

Research shows that 1.22 million tonnes of food is lost or wasted in New Zealand every year, and makes up 5 to 10% of our total food production. The biggest contributors in the food supply chain are primary production (27%), households (30%) and processing (27%).

The Baseline Food Loss and Waste Report (2025) has more information about food waste in New Zealand

Since it opened, nine projects valued at $8.52m have been funded for food waste initiatives.

In September 2026, three new projects totalling $1.7 million were announced:  

• Love Food Hate Waste - WasteMINZ will receive $800,000 over two years to extend its household food waste reduction work, building on the successful Love Food Hate Waste campaign through national multimedia campaigns and partnerships with councils. It will leverage support from 52 councils and the wider WasteMINZ membership.  
• Kai Commitment – the NZ Food Waste Champions 12.3 Trust will receive $750,000 over three years to continue a voluntary national agreement supporting food production and other businesses to measure, manage and reduce food waste across the supply chain. 
• Kai Keeper Food Waste Behaviour Change Project - the Restaurant Association of New Zealand will receive $150,000 to expand the Kai Keepers programme across New Zealand for one year, helping hospitality businesses reduce food waste, improve diversion of organic waste from landfill.

In 2023, six organisations received a total of $6.8 million in funding, contributing to reducing food waste by 10 per cent.

This included:

• Zero Waste Network and Environment Hubs Aotearoa Consortium was awarded up to $1,890,000 for their project ‘Resourceful households – Changing habits to prevent food waste’. The Project was to deliver the Resourceful Households Food Waste Prevention programme over a three-year period. Using a facilitated ‘citizen science’ model and a range of tools and techniques, the aim was to support participating households to adopt at least two food waste reduction behaviours.
• Restaurant Association of New Zealand Incorporated was awarded up to $320,000 for their project ‘Food Waste Behaviour Change Project’. The Project recruited cafés and restaurants across the Auckland and Bay of Plenty regions to participate in four pilots delivered over a two-year period.
• WasteMINZ was awarded up to $2,880,000 for their project ‘Love Food Hate Waste New Zealand – Reducing Food Waste in the Household Sector’. The Project delivered national multimedia campaigns to support households throughout Aotearoa to reduce food waste. Using the established Love Food Hate Waste New Zealand brand, the Project promoted practical actions to prevent food waste and worked with councils and other organisations to maximise reach, scale and impact.
• NZ Food Waste Champions 12.3 Trust was awarded up to $750,000 for their project‘ Kai Commitment’. The Project delivered a national voluntary agreement supporting food businesses to reduce food waste and associated emissions.
• Para Kore Marae Incorporated was awarded up to $750,000 for their project ‘Whāngaihia te Whānau – Waiho Aha te Moumou Kai’. The Project delivered a Māori-led approach to reducing food waste in Māori-led settings across Aotearoa New Zealand through Para Kore’s Para Kai Programme.
• University of Otago (lead organisation for a consortium including the Retirement Villages Association, Arvida, and Bupa) was awarded up to $230,000 for their project ‘Reducing Food Waste in the Retirement Sector’. The Project sought to reduce food waste within the aged care and retirement village sector through a sector-wide approach. The Project included research, the design and testing of interventions, and implementation of the most successful approaches to reduce food waste in commercial kitchens across the retirement sector.