More than 269 thousand tonnes of food waste were generated in Latvia in 2024. On average, each resident produces 144 kg of food waste per year. The latest research data show that the largest volume of food waste still arises in households, where 85.8 kg of food waste per resident is generated each year.
“Reducing food waste is an essential step towards sustainability. The research data show that food waste remains a significant problem in Latvia, and purposeful action is needed from policymakers, businesses and residents alike. This study helps to identify the problems clearly and to develop targeted solutions at every stage – from production right through to households. I want to stress that food waste is not merely wasted food – it is also wasted resources, energy, human labour and money,” emphasises Minister for Climate and Energy Kaspars Melnis.
Breakdown of food waste by supply chain stage:
· primary production (agriculture) – 23,297 t (12.5 kg per resident);
· food production and processing – 27,478 t (14.7 kg per resident);
· retail – 41,359 t (22.1 kg per resident);
· catering – 16,771 t (9 kg per resident);
· households – 160,692 t (85.8 kg per resident).
Food waste arises at each stage for different reasons.
· In primary production it arises because of unfavourable weather conditions, disease or technological problems.
· In production and processing – from poor-quality raw materials, production defects or logistics errors.
· In retail the waste consists mainly of damaged products or products past their use-by date.
· In catering, where the volume of waste is the smallest, businesses more often implement solutions such as adjusting portion sizes, packaging meals to take away and reusing leftover food.
In households food waste most often arises from the way food is stored, from insufficient planning or from misunderstandings about expiry dates. Of the total volume, only 11.5% ends up in biowaste containers, 19.4% in home compost, 51.7% in household waste containers and 17.4% down the drain. For waste management to be environmentally friendly and for resources to be used efficiently, public education and the provision of infrastructure must continue, so that people put as much of the food waste they generate as possible into biowaste containers and compost it.
The first measurements of food waste volumes in Latvia were carried out in 2020, when an average of 145 kg of food waste was generated per resident.
Under the EU targets, by 2030 the volume of waste must be reduced by 10% at the production and processing stage, and by 30% in retail, catering and households.
Although the volume of food waste in Latvia fell in primary production, processing and catering in 2024, it increased in retail and households.
A few tips for reducing food waste:
· plan your shopping and meals;
· store products correctly;
· understand the date marking on food packaging (“use by” vs. “best before”);
· use leftovers to make new dishes;
· donate surplus food;
· use the various apps available. For example, participants in the girls' leadership and entrepreneurship programme “Future Heroes” have developed an app called BestB4, which lets you keep track of product expiry dates, receive reminders and find recipes so that foods nearing their date are used in good time.
Since 2024, the separation of food and biowaste has been compulsory in Latvia, either using brown containers or by composting on residential premises. Separating waste ensures that biowaste is properly processed into compost or biogas, and reduces not only the amount of waste sent to landfill but also households' waste management costs. Households gain these benefits too if they compost the biowaste and food waste they generate on their own property.
*In order to develop a methodology for measuring food waste and to obtain comparable data on food waste volumes in Latvia in 2024, the current study was carried out between September 2023 and April 2025. Data on food waste were collected using surveys, studies, statistics provided by the parties involved, direct mass measurements, weighing of food waste, diary records and other methods, supplemented by national statistical data sources. The study was carried out within the LIFE IP project “Waste as a resource in Latvia”, in cooperation between researchers from Rīga Stradiņš University and SIA “Jaunrades Laboratorija”.
More detailed information about the amount of food waste generated at each stage of the food supply chain, and about the scope of food waste in general, is set out in the infographics:
· Infographic on the scope (definition) of food waste.
· Infographic on the entire food supply chain.
· Infographic on primary production.