Swedish furniture retail giant IKEA, which has U.S. headquarters in Conshohocken, has started the Food is Precious initiative aimed at cutting food waste in half within its operations by the end of 2020.

Each year, close to 650 million people visit IKEA’s 400 stores in 48 markets worldwide and enjoy the food there. More than 20 percent of those stores have already implemented this solution, resulting in a reduction of 79.200 kilograms, or nearly 175,000 pounds of food waste.

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According to a survey performed in stores that are already participating in the initiative, 70 percent of employees working in food operations are proud of the program. More than half have also taken it as an incentive to reduce their food waste at home.

As well as starting this new initiative, IKEA has joined the Champions 12.3, World Resource Institute in a global coalition against food waste.

”The power of this unique coalition is that it brings together high-profile leaders from a range of sectors impacting the global food supply to motivate and demonstrate that reducing food loss and waste is possible and necessary,” said Liz Goodwin, Senior Fellow and Director of Food Loss and Waste at the World Resources Institute.

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