Food waste amounts to 700 grams per person per week, almost one per cent of gross domestic product (GDP). But at least awareness of an increasingly evident social problem is growing among citizens. Indeed, in the "waste hit parade", food waste has taken the top spot: seven in ten Italians – compared with 60 per cent just six months ago – admit to throwing food away. The reasons? It had passed its use-by date in 63 per cent of cases, or gone mouldy in 51 per cent; too much had been bought in 58 per cent of cases, or too much cooked in 43 per cent.

The data emerge from a survey by the Osservatorio waste watcher di Last minute market/Swg, which shows that food waste now surpasses the waste of water (52 per cent), time spent commuting (25 per cent), electricity (24 per cent), money (16 per cent) and gas (7 per cent). While it is now well established that discarded food represents a genuine emergency, there is less awareness of the useful strategies for avoiding such waste. "One in three Italians, 33 per cent," explains Swg president Maurizio Pessato, "says they have no clear idea where to find good practices for preventing it. The road to communicating effectively with citizens on this issue looks rather long. But it is already clear that as many as six in ten Italians give their backing to awareness-raising in schools to promote attention to and prevention of food waste."

According to data from the Reduce project – carried out by the University of Bologna in collaboration with the Ministry of the Environment – total food waste in Italy is worth 15 billion euros: 12 billion at the domestic level and 3 billion along the supply chain, between production and distribution. This amounts to 700 grams per person per week, with a value of 3.76 euros per week and 196 euros per year. For 64 per cent of respondents, writing a shopping list before going to the supermarket is essential, as is freezing foods that will not be eaten in the near future (63 per cent); followed by being careful not to cook more than necessary (51 per cent), reusing leftovers and meal scraps (49 per cent), checking whether foods have really gone off before throwing them away (49 per cent), and organising food in the fridge more carefully with attention to expiry dates (43 per cent).

There is still a long way to go in schools too: the Reduce survey calculated an average of 90 grams of food left on each student's plate and 27 grams of untouched food abandoned on canteen trays per meal. "Just days before the start of the new school year," stresses Last Minute Market president Andrea Segrè, "we are taking up the call from citizens and amplifying it, so that food education becomes part of the school curriculum, and so that the civic education of our time is not divorced from raising awareness on sustainability and environmental education."

On the awareness-raising front, the Premio "Vivere a Spreco Zero" will also be relaunched this year, promoted by the Spreco Zero campaign of Last minute market with the Ministry of the Environment, through the 60 Sei Zero project: a call open to businesses, public administrations, schools, associations and citizens; this year's testimonial will be artist Neri Marcorè, who will take part in the awards ceremony on 26 November. For pupils and teachers in primary schools, a good practices kit is on its way, which will be available to download from 10 September on the website sprecozero.it. It includes theoretical and visual learning paths and recreational activities, together with a manual for use at school, all aimed at anti-waste food education. It will also be possible to download the "Diario del giovane investigatore" – a real diary that will allow young pupils to investigate what is going on in the fridge and the family pantry at home, updating it day by day.