Shorouk Express
Spain has passed a new law to help reduce food waste in the country. Here’s what to know and how it’ll affect you, from being able to ask for doggy bags at all restaurants to getting great supermarket deals on ‘ugly’ but perfectly good fruit and veg.
According to data from the Ministry of Agriculture Spain wasted almost 1.3 million tons of food in 2023, a huge amount that could have been avoided with right practices in place.
The food waste law has been in the pipeline for sometime and was even approved on January 2nd 2025, but had to be delayed due to an error.
Most of the law entered into force on April 3rd, after its publication in the Official State Gazette (BOE), but there will be certain parts that will be delayed again for a subsequent year, until April 3rd, 2026.
This includes the the introduction of a food loss and waste prevention plan, as well as donation plan to give away any unused or unwanted food.
The new law aims to achieve a 50 percent reduction in food waste per capita in retail and consumer goods, as well as a 20 percent reduction in production and supply chains by 2030.
Food donation and reuse
The law will make it obligatory for more food establishments to donate any unwanted or left over food. Companies must now prioritise donating food that is close to the best before date for example, before throwing it away. This means that food banks and NGOs will also be able to feed more vulnerable people. If it can’t be donated because the food is not fit for human consumption, it must be donated to the farming and agricultural sector for animal feed, compost or energy creation.
Smaller businesses of less than 10 workers are excluded from this obligation, as well as small farms of less than 50 employees or establishments of less than 1,300 metres squared.
Doggy bags
It is now mandatory for restaurants, cafes etc (except all you can eat buffets) to provide you with recyclable containers to take away any uneaten food. These should be offered free of charge and if not, you have the right to ask for them. This is to avoid food wastage in restaurants and encourage diners to take their left overs home instead of the restaurant having to throw them away.
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Education and changing habits
The law aims to change the way people live and educate them on food wastage. Of course, no one can police the amount of food you waste at home and fine you accordingly, but they can teach you how to cook and use food more efficiently. It aims to educate the population on ways you can plan your shopping better, store your food properly so it doesn’t go bad and understand expiration and best-before dates so you can use those items first.
More deals in supermarkets
If you come from a country such as the UK, where it’s very common to see reduced items on the shelves, you’ll be surprised by how little it’s done in Spain. Occasionally you may see one or two reduced products but most it’s not widespread and there are usually no specific reduced sections. The new law aims to change that and encourage supermarkets to offer products that are close to expiration date or fruit and vegetables that are ‘ugly’ at lower prices. This can help save on your weekly shop and, in turn, reduce waste.
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Food Loss and Waste Prevention Plan
All companies in the food sector are required to develop and implement a Food Loss and Waste Prevention Plan. This plan must include a process analysis, corrective measures, a hierarchy of priorities. For example, they will be obliged to create a hierarchy of which products can be donated and which ones need to be used and eaten first.
More flexibility in restaurants
Restaurants and cafes are being encouraged to create more flexible menus, so that customers can choose smaller portions or mains without sides for example if they don’t want to eat as much. This in turn encourages customers not to order food or portion sizes they know they won’t be able to eat.
Fines
There will be a series of fines in place for establishments who don’t follow the new law or put the above points into action. Fines range from €2,001 to €60,000 for not food waste prevention plan in place or for the intentional wastage of food fit for consumption. In cases of repeated offences or particularly serious violations they can even go up to €500,000.
