2022 Challenge
registrations are

We’re cooking up Aotearoa’s 2023 Zero Food Waste Challenge. To collaborate or chinwag, get in touch.

The Zero Food Waste Challenge Week

19-25 September 2022

So, what’s all this about then?

We’re inviting you to join our FREE 7-DAY CHALLENGE to put NOTHING, NADA, NIL, ZIP, ZILCH, KORE, ZERO food in the bin.

You won’t be doing it solo. We’ll give you plenty of tips, tricks and tools to help you make the most of your food. You’ll be doing a whole lot of good for the planet and your pocket.

Oh, and there’ll be prizes and exclusive offers.

Registrations close 15 September 2022, 11:59pm

Do good for the planet and your pocket.

Sign up. Be in to win a snazzy new fridge/freezer.

Goodies up for grabs. Exclusive offers & prizes.

What’s the challenge?

Let’s put nothing, nada, nil, zip, zilch, kore, zero food into the bin destined for landfill for a whole week.

Or do the very best you can.

Let’s give it a darn good Kiwi go and start something awesome.

Why the heck are we doing this?

33% of all food produced goes uneaten. That’s a big old waste of precious resources.

Food in landfills creates 10% of methane emissions warming the planet. YIKES!

The average Kiwi family chucks out about $1500 of food per year.

At a national level, we waste enough food to feed Hamilton for a year.

Eco-anxiety is an issue for our tamariki. Let’s give them a way to help.

1 in 5 New Zealanders face food insecurity.

A bit of a snapshot

Climate action, zero waste and zero hunger are sustainable development goals by 2030. That’s just over 88 months away. Yup, we’re counting.

So, what can we do? Stopping food from being wasted is one of the simplest ways to save money. It’s also the low hanging fruit in the battle against climate change, and we can all help out.

But it’s not all bad. Some clever people have done a survey which found 86% of Kiwis believe that wasting food is wrong. Too right.

Sources: United Nations Environment Programme, Food Index Report 2021 / Love Food Hate Waste, Scotland 2021 / Kore Haikai – Zero Hunger Collective Aotearoa, NZ 2021 / The RaboBank-KiwiHarvest Food Waste Survey NZ, April 2022

How it works

The lowdown on the challenge

Sign up to the Zero Food Waste Challenge and we’ll send you a whole lot of downloadable resources straight away:

  • The Challenge at a glance – everything you need to know on a page
  • Zero Food Waste Bingo Game for the whole planet
  • Pocket guide for curious kids, clever teachers & arty adults
  • Intros to your local food rescue charity tackling food waste in your backyard so it doesn’t clog landfill

Plus be in to win 1 of 50 tasty $5-OFF Foodprint App vouchers to kickstart your zero food waste journey. See Ts & Cs.

In the week before the challenge

  • Get tips and downloadable resources to prep your pantry and get meal smart
  • Plus special offers and goodies up for grabs – and who doesn’t love those?

Challenge Week 19-25 September

  • Every day, we’ll send you a tip to waste less, save more
  • We’ll cover food storage, upcycling, loving your leftovers, composting and more
  • All so that nothing, nada, nil, zip, zilch, kore, zero goes in the bin for the whole week
  • The special offers and prizes just keep on coming.

Thursday 29 September – International End Food Waste Day*

Get the free Zero Food Waste Pocket Guide to help you carry-on your zero food waste journey

(*Well, it’s officially called the UN’s International Day of Awareness of Food Loss & Waste but that’s a real tongue twister.)

We’d love to introduce you to your local food rescue crew.

While you’re fighting food waste at home, they’re busy rescuing food for the community – filling lives, not landfill.

Sitting at our table

The free Zero Food Waste Challenge has been created by a group of friends fed up with food waste. From The kitchen table, we’re bringing together food rescue charities across Aotearoa to spark conversation and change.

Working with:

A generous helping from Zero Food Waste Heroes

Countdown

Countdown is committed to zero waste to landfill by 2025. Every Countdown across Aotearoa donates surplus food to their local food rescue partner. They’ve also created The Odd Bunch range – selling produce that might otherwise have been binned due to teeny imperfections.

A side serving from Zero Food Waste Cheerleaders

The 5+ A DAY Charitable Trust

5+ A Day encourages Kiwis to eat five or more servings of fresh vegetables and two servings of fruit every day for good health. 5+ A Day supports food rescue organisations with locally grown, seasonal fruit and vegetables during lockdowns.

PANASONIC PRIME+ EDITION

Next level smart fridge and freezer storage solutions with multiple ways to make meal preparation and food storage easier to maintain food quality and mitigate food waste.

And inaugural parter

Aotearoa Food Rescue Alliance

Supporting the food rescue sector in Aotearoa, New Zealand to prevent food waste and nourish communities

Also at the table, Zero Food Waste Fans

Love Food Hate Waste NZ
NZ Digital
The Planet – Papatuanuku

Got questions?

Contact Us or check out the Faqs

Challenge a buddy or business to sign up too.

Registrations close 15 September 2022, 11:59pm