Episode Transcript
[00:00:01] Speaker A: The best insight, instant feedback, accountability. The all new Talk Radio Freedom 106.5
[00:00:08] Speaker B: welcome to the Radisson Hotel and of course it's the first, the inauguration, the first installment of the Food Caribbean Food Summit, Waste Summit and that is taking place here in Port of Spain. As Tusca mentioned a few moments ago. Sorry about that.
[00:00:23] Speaker C: We just had somebody coming to me
[00:00:25] Speaker B: and bringing some information.
Alright, so what Tusca mentioned a few moments ago is exactly what is on everybody's lips. And it's a problem that happens in
[00:00:34] Speaker C: every household, or at least most.
[00:00:36] Speaker B: We cook food, we put it in the refrigerator and then it ends up in the garbage. The thing about it is this summit is geared towards this solvable problem because we believe it can be solved. I spoke with the management team earlier this morning and they are pretty, pretty much excited as this is the inauguration. When I asked the questions about it going forward, they said definitely yes. And I can tell you the room is, is filled with persons that are very much interested in food sustainability as of course that and security is on everybody's mind because just recently out there in Caricom heads of government meeting they talked about food sustainability.
All right, so if you are wasting food or food keeps being tossed out and thrown out, then that could be consumed by persons. Is it that we are not measuring our systems correctly in the Caribbean for that matter. And we see that happening with restaurants. I mean for those of you in the food business, I mean I know certain restaurants right now in Trinidad and Tobago when they, there's a certain time when you go to them, you can't get certain things because they start shutting down because they find themselves the store is closing at 10 and persons walking there 15 before and can't get certain items because they no longer frying or they probably will just start cooking it as you walk in because they are trying to manage this very, very problem that we are facing. So with that being said, Tosca be on standby. The show is about to start and we'll be coming back in a few moments to kick things off here at the Radisson Hotel.
[00:02:07] Speaker D: Thank you so much Davey.
As we just got a capsule report as to what's happening at the Radisson.
In the meantime I am going to play a rerun of Agribusiness Innovations as it is the hour for that. And then as we another update as to how the conference is going at the Radisson we will join them. So stay tuned. This is a rerun of Agribusiness Innovations
[00:02:38] Speaker A: Station that's giving you back the power to speak your mind. The all new talk radio Freedom 106.5.
[00:02:46] Speaker E: And of course you're live on Freedom 106.5 FM. And Davies here with me. This is Jody White. And if you are interested in agriculture, innovation and sustainability, well this is the show every single week on Thursdays, 10 to 11am that you want to stay tuned. Of course. Joining me Today I have Ms. Cindy Ann Currency of the Digicel foundation and I have Mr. Tobias Franking from Uber Green and some other entities related to to Coco. And today's discussion is investing in agro sustainable agro projects. So Cindy, let's start with you. Digicel foundation, welcome.
[00:03:28] Speaker F: Hi Jody, thanks so much for having us.
[00:03:31] Speaker E: Tell us a little bit more about yourself professionally and then about the foundation.
[00:03:37] Speaker F: Okay, well I'm the head of operations at Digicel Foundation. I've worked at the Digicel foundation for the past 10 years. So I've been there from the very early beginnings of the foundation because we only started in 2012.
I've been responsible for, you know, the setup, stakeholder engagement. I do a lot of our media and PR stuff. And one of my biggest parts of my portfolio is the actual project involvement. So I am the person, as you said, go around the country looking at all of the projects, meeting our project partners and seeing walking them through the different stages of their project from planning to implementation to execution.
[00:04:13] Speaker D: All right, this is where I interrupt the rerun of Agribusiness Innovations as we return to the Radisson Hotel for the Caribbean Food Waste conference swim call.
[00:04:26] Speaker G: Ms. Zaria Lee Darlington, Education Officer, Environmental Management Authority. Specially invited guests. Ladies and gentlemen, welcome.
We are about to get the show on the road but I just wanted to reiterate something.
This event is critical at this time. I was often asked the question, Shan, why are we talking about food waste now?
And my answer was, why not now?
This conversation is absolutely necessary for the time that we are in.
Trinidad and Tobago has been generating food and organic waste in the largest quantities for more than 20 years.
And so it is really important that we start looking at systems, infrastructure, policies, collaboration to move the conversation forward in the Caribbean region, Trinidad and Tobago. I would like to say, and I hope through this event is at the forefront of this discussion.
Many of you who are in the room are participating in this conversation from a variety of areas, from community, from policy, from manufacturing, from distribution, from the farm, from the processor, from the academic institution to agricultural development organizations. We are all and entrepreneurs. We are all part of this amazing and necessary conversation.
So, without taking too long, I would like to officially turn you over to our host, Mr. Davey Murray, producer of the Bling My Wedding and radio announcer at Guardian Media limited. Davy.
[00:06:24] Speaker H: Good morning.
[00:06:27] Speaker C: Good morning.
[00:06:28] Speaker B: I stand on all protocols observed.
[00:06:32] Speaker C: The thing about it is when we talk about food and food waste.
I was thinking about it on my show this morning and it's a conversation that lends to every household in the Caribbean at some point in time. We cook, we prepare meals for the family, and then it ends up in the fridge and for some reason we can't eat it anymore and the garbage takes it.
Is that true? I'm seeing the nods.
So a summit like this not only lends credibility to the entrepreneurs and those of you in the room, but I like to believe that Those listening on Freedom 106.5 FM that is carrying this summit live must understand the importance of food stability and sustainability in the Caribbean. And with that being said, I want to invite Ms. Camille to open with God's favor this morning and she will start with a prayer.
[00:07:33] Speaker H: Good morning, everyone.
[00:07:34] Speaker I: Please join me in bowing your heads and closing your eyes for the opening prayer. Heavenly Father, we thank you for bringing us together today for this Caribbean food Waste summit and culinary showcase.
Thank you for the gift of life, for the food that sustains us, and for the opportunity to gather as a community committed to making a positive difference in our region.
Lord, we recognize that food is more than nourishment. It represents the hard work of our farmers, the dedication of our food producers, the creativity of our chefs, and the livelihoods of the many people who contribute to getting food from the farm to our tables. Help us to value these efforts and to become better stewards of the resources you have entrusted to us.
Share inspire practical solutions to reduce food waste, support our local communities, protect our environment, and build a more sustainable and food secure Caribbean. We pray for every speaker, organizer, participant, exhibitor and young person present here today. Bless their contributions.
May the connections we make today grow into partnerships that continue to bear fruit long after this summit has ended. Amen.
[00:08:57] Speaker C: Thank you very much.
Now, with that being said, I challenge every speaker and persons coming on on the panel to really put the language in such a manner that we are not just speaking to those existing in the room. I take notice of some schools I'm seeing here this morning, but I want the language to be one where Those listening on Freedom 106.5 FM can truly benefit. Think about the man that sits in a taxi that is listening, the driver that's on the Road right now we talk in food waste. We want the language to communicate and connect with where it matters the most. Those down there, those we, us in the room, we on the ground, we who are involved in it. All right? We want that language to be transitioned in such a manner that they take good advice that is coming off from here and not hear a language that they think to themselves, maybe this is parliament and I shouldn't listen anymore. Maybe this is some new legislation being drafted because as we all understand when it comes to law, it's subjected to interpretation. But I prefer dealing with discussions. That brings it home and I challenge you all to do that. This morning.
Our first speaker hails from the islands of St. Kitts and Nevis.
Senator, the Honorable Dr. Joy L. Clark, Minister Environment, Climate Action and Constituency Empowerment.
Please with a round of applause.
All right, so they trying to connect with the minister and that shit happening a little bit. But while that is taking place, I truly want persons to think about it. And I ask the question, have you ever wasted food?
Have you ever cooked something and you know you're just kite anymore and you just. Or you just don't feel it anymore, you toss it away. I seen this person saying no. So you never did that. What about you? Anybody? You buy food and you take too much and then nobody else could eat from the plate and it tossed.
As simple as it seems, that is wasting food.
That is something that somebody else in society could have benefited from. And we do it time and time again. I'll be the first to say I'm guilty. I have done it. I have walked into the room, I would have taken a plate and felt to myself, I could eat this, I could eat this and I can eat that. And then halfway through three quarter in the meal, I recognize no more and there it goes in the bin. Then I think now when we come to the agricultural sector, I think about pricing, I think about the entrepreneurs who sell at the food stalls. And I often ask myself, when they buy their vegetables and they pay the wholesale prices, what happens next when they can't seem to find buyers for these products?
What is the shelf life? How do we help entrepreneurs and farmers to send the right amount that they can estimate the customer base that they have in that particular community or in that particular Mini Martin? Because you often go to buy potatoes, carrots and produce and from the time you start to see wrinkles, what happens? Or you pick up that potato and it feels a bit soft or the onion didn't feel right and I'm just talking on a Layman's term, because these are things that affect us all.
So I want that to resonate in your minds as we focus the conversation on this very important summit. I think the minister is ready, so I turn you over to her.
Minister, can you hear me?
Are you hearing me? Minister?
[00:12:53] Speaker B: Where's the next mic she could hear?
[00:12:55] Speaker C: Okay, she's hearing.
Are you hearing me, Minister?
[00:13:05] Speaker B: Okay, go ahead.
[00:13:08] Speaker J: Thank you.
[00:13:11] Speaker H: Thank you.
[00:13:17] Speaker J: So I bring you very warm greetings from Think it's in Nevis. Pleasure for me to join you virtually to share in much needed conversation on food waste at this Caribbean Food Waste Summit.
Allow me please, to start by acknowledging the organizers of this summit and all of the distinguished participants for their sessions.
And special note, of course, to seal environmental for taking on the challenge of food waste with experts, governments and educational institutions.
Your work is commendable and it surely will manifest many rewards for your country and the region in the near future, even if not now.
As West Indian people, we know that food is exactly who we are. Across many ethnicities, ethnicities, cultures and identities. Our love of food, the preparation, the seasoning, the serving, the feasting, it's a commonality, a binding agent that borders on ritual.
It is how we show our love and nurture community, how we apologize, how we celebrate, how we express ourselves and share the realness and richness of our culture.
But this is also when we get the frowns and the sneers and the stares. And at the end of the party or a dinner, a wedding or a repast, when plates are being scraped into.
Scraped clean into bins, we marvel sometimes at the waste. Sometimes we have an auntie or an uncle collecting scraps for dogs at home. But it is never enough.
Much of the feast sometimes goes directly into the trash. But this is still the smaller side of the food waste challenge that we must debate and tackle as our countries continue toward economic diversification and industrial expansion.
What was once a close to home experience now must expand into scale and output to satisfy the growing needs not only of our people, but equally of visitors to our shores, an increase that does not occur in isolation.
Upping food production on all fronts directly results in an upsurge in waste, which naturally results in an increasing demand on waste management, on circularity needs and on sustainability targets.
And this is why the thinking and thinking critically about food waste is an absolute necessity.
Food waste is more than just a discarded meal.
It is the time, dedication and labor of the farmers, of the livestock producers, fisher folk, restorators and homemakers. It is the resources used to package to process and transport. And it's the added strain on our waste management systems and ultimately our environment.
The reality of being a small island developing state is that we are operating within a system of finite resources.
And for the sake of our survival, we have no choice but to strike fair balances across sectors.
Limited land and thus limited landfills, persistent climate pressures, thus unstable and unpredictable agricultural yields and increasing water insecurity, significant energy cost and competing needs that stretch an already thin GDP even thinner. And that's a reality.
Food waste, therefore sits at the intersection of a great many issues that we are already investing significant time, energy and financing to solve on various fronts. And so approaching it with that level of consciousness is a critical factor to our progress.
I believe that a resolution could be simple if we we are willing to remember, remember times past before there was a United nations that told us about an SDG 12 called Responsible Production and Consumption.
Our grandparents and great grandparents instilled in all of us the old adage, waste not, want not. And as a Caribbean people, it is our tradition to make the most of what we have to preserve, to use every last crumb and to share what surplus we had.
If we can modernize these ways of life, these ways of thinking, these consciousness, upscale them to match our present realities, then we set ourselves on a course for success.
When we choose to rethink our consumption habits and not see a landfill as our only option for this disposal, be it composting, sharing.
When we encourage and embed these practices into our hospitality and agricultural sectors or energy sector and our educational institutions.
When we aim to work together across all levels of society, governance structures and borders, and when we move to engage and educate the public on this mindset shift, then we can substantively and sustainably address food waste in ways that are effective, build resilience and add value.
As we gather at this Caribbean Food Waste Summit, I really do want to thank the organizers. I ask that we place this value at the core of our discussions.
The value of our food, the value of our resources, the value of our culture, or Caribbean culture in particular, and the value of building a modern Caribbean region where food is respected from farm to fork.
Thank you so much and I wish the rest of the conference much success. And again, many congratulations to seal environmental for organizing such an important conversation on food waste here at the Caribbean Food Waste Summit. Thank you.
[00:19:39] Speaker C: Thank you very much, Hon. Minister.
I love what she says.
Do we have a respect for food?
Can we exist without it?
Well, the conversations continue this morning on the global perspective of this very, very important summit. Again, I challenge all that when the language spoken is one that everyone can understand. With that being said, I turn the attention to the moderator for this next segment here from CNC3, Mr. Ryan Mechu.
[00:20:20] Speaker K: Thank you.
Thank you very much.
I think, and this is my opinion, and maybe many of you don't share my opinion, and that's fine.
But one of my peeves is that I don't really think that Caribbean people
[00:20:36] Speaker L: were I on mute. I just figured I was on mute now.
[00:20:41] Speaker K: And not just the food price.
[00:20:43] Speaker L: Okay.
[00:20:44] Speaker K: The water crisis that you were so ably speaking about a few weeks ago on your program.
And that's strange to see. That's strange to see because we just emerged out of a COVID 19 pandemic. And we saw during that COVID 19 pandemic, when supply chains break, the impact that it can have on us here in the Caribbean. And that always intrigues me because the pandemic was not so far away. And I was hoping that we would learn so much more because of the COVID 19 pandemic that if something far greater is to happen, God forbid, a world war or a conflict in this part of the world, how those chains, those broken chains, will affect Trinidad and Tobago and the Caribbean. And it is on the basis of that thought that I'm so honored to be here this morning at the Caribbean Food Waste Summit, but also to be invited to moderate a panel discussion by Sean and her team. So thank you all very much for having me this morning. Thank you all very much. Braving the traffic to get into Port of Spain very early and for being at what is really an important discussion. I want to start by welcoming all of our panelists for this panel discussion. We have David, we have Margo, we have Stephane. I'm going to read a little bit of their biographies and then we're going to get right into the conversation.
Just a little bit about me. I'm a climate change journalist from here in Trinidad and to covering the global south and the Caribbean with a specific focus on small island developing States.
I want to start with David Lee, who is the Director of Business Initiatives at Refed, where he works with businesses to accelerate food waste reduction through custom analytics, capacity building and strategic advisory support.
With a background in supply chain management consulting, consumer insights and innovation, David brings extensive experience helping organizations identify and adopt practical solutions. David holds an MBA and teaches creative economies as an adjunct faculty member at the Minneapolis College of Art and Design. David, welcome. Thank you very much for being here.
Margo Leone is head of Marketing and Partnerships at the The Pledge on Food Waste, a third party certification and methodology helping hospitality businesses prevent and reduce food waste. With over 10 years of experience in marketing and business development, she works across methodology tools and communications to translate food waste data and operational practices into practical, measurable actions. Her work focuses on making food waste prevention access accessible and commercially relevant for hotels, restaurants and food service teams. And finally, Sifan Larue. Stephane is Executive Director of the International Food Waste Coalition, a program under Waste and Resources Action Food Program Europe, where he leads efforts to reduce food waste across the hospitality and catering services.
With nearly three decades of international experience in sustainability, circular economy and organizational transformation, he combines engineering expertise with strategic leadership to drive measurable impact. Previously Managing Director for Glass Recycling at Sibelco Group, Stephane brings extensive experience in business growth and sustainable development.
Lady and gentlemen, welcome to the panel. Thank you all very much for making time to be with us. Stephane, I will start with you and it's a question that I will ask all three panelists to answer in just about 60 seconds. If you had one advice or one important measure that the Caribbean should be taking right now to address this issue of food waste, what would that be? Stephane?
Okay.
[00:24:52] Speaker B: Good morning again, Trinidad and Tobago. We are coming to you live from the Radisson Hotel here in Port of Spain. It's all about the Caribbean Food Waste Summit, the first of its kind here in Trinidad and Tobago and what promises to be won annually.
So Ryan Beatriau, the moderator for this panel discussion on global perspectives, It's a virtual panel, so some technical difficulties. We are trying to iron it out. We're going to be discussing the global perspective, accelerating food waste reduction through collaboration.
The refed, which is business and investment perspective, the business case for Food Waste Action. The pledge on food Waste, Hospitality perspective, embedded food waste prevention into hospitality operations. So those are just some things this panel is expected to discuss this morning. And we are just trying to iron out those technicalities as these individuals are joining us from various parts of the globe.
This Caribbean Food Waste Summit is one that is a conversation that I believe should have happened before. So let's go back center stage. I think Ryan has it there, her technical team has it sorted out. And Ryan is speaking.
All right, so we still are waiting to get some. We having some audio difficulties on our end. So we need to get that sorted out as quickly as possible and then we'll be able to go back center stage and give you some insight as to what is taking place. But this panel discussion is happening with at least four persons.
And as I mentioned, this is the Global Perspective virtual panel. Ryan Beatrix from CNC3 is our moderator on this one. And we are expected to hear conversations about the reduction. Through collaborations, we want to understand perspectives as it relates the case for food waste action.
[00:26:49] Speaker M: Let's go and see businesses to address food waste between prevention all the way to recycling, and most people, when they think about diverting food waste or reducing food waste, they think, well, how do I donate it, how do I recycle it? But the biggest opportunity is in preventing food waste. So the first thing I would do as a food business is find a way to engage your employees and recognize them for all of the things they do to measure and track food waste, because it will take them, the folks on the ground handling the food, preparing the food, a lot of extra potential work to, if you're a restaurant, weigh the food that you're wasting, write down and track the food that is being thrown away.
And the number one recommendation I would say is to get better at planning and forecasting so that that happens if you're a retailer, if you are a restaurant, the better you can forecast, the more you can save money and the more you can actually reduce your food waste than if you were to recycle or donate it.
[00:28:02] Speaker K: Appreciate that.
David Marco, I want to go to you in just about 60, 60, what would be one action the Caribbean should adopt to address food waste?
[00:28:17] Speaker N: I'm sorry, I think we can hear an echo.
[00:28:22] Speaker K: Yes, I think we might be dealing with that echo. And the technical guys are dealing with that echo.
[00:28:28] Speaker N: Okay, so I'll truly introduce myself. Thank you, David, actually, for the response. I think it's a full holistic way of responding to the issue at hand. So I'm Margo. I'm head of partnership for the pledge on food waste. We are a third party independent certification on food waste. Specifically, we consider ourselves and our methodology to be very in depth when it comes to food waste. There's a whole framework that our current pledgers and certified properties are actually following to address the issue and reduce prevent food waste.
[00:29:05] Speaker O: So for me, the one action I
[00:29:07] Speaker N: think that we can start right away that doesn't require budget or extra equipment and that can start tomorrow is actually tracking your waste. The main issue we're facing today is that in the industry, a waste is in business.
[00:29:24] Speaker B: All right, so we still having a bit of a challenge with those international panelists technical team. I think they have it right and out now. So let's go back center stage.
Okay, so they're switching again. For those of you just joining Us, we are here at the Caribbean Food Waste Summit for 2026. It's the first of its kind. I think we're getting the audio clear now. So let's go back center stage.
[00:29:52] Speaker L: The one, the real one that I would. I would do. And it talks to policy. It's to agree on the share regional food waste target and start measuring and probably starting with hotels and resorts. I mean, there are three reasons for that. The first one is about, you know, the fact that what you can't, you can't manage what you don't measure. And. And we believe that today in most Caribbean, most Caribbean operators, they don't know exactly what they are wasting. So that's one. The second one is that tourism is where most food waste is being actually generated and especially, you know, where imported food is the most expensive. So it talks to the issue of the Caribbean. And the third one is that. And especially that talks to hotels. I mean, this is a very concentrated market with international groups being present in different hotel groups. Measuring with one method, you would be able to see very rapidly a baseline and first saving in a matter of a few months or maybe a year. So I would really start with regional food waste target and start measuring hotel and let's say, resorts.
[00:31:02] Speaker K: Yeah, that's key. Margot, I'm just confirming that you are hearing me through the microphone. I'm using the microphone now.
Margot, are you hearing.
[00:31:19] Speaker N: There's an echo again.
[00:31:21] Speaker K: Okay, I'm gonna switch the mic.
I do want to move into our global problem of food waste.
The challenges differ from region to region, but.
[00:31:36] Speaker M: Thank you.
[00:31:37] Speaker K: It differs from region to region, but what is the biggest challenge in dealing with food waste across the world right now?
[00:31:45] Speaker C: Margo,
[00:31:48] Speaker N: I think I want to go back to what I was saying previously, which is food waste.
The amount of food waste happening in kitchen is actually invisible because 90% of businesses, hotels, restaurants, are not actually tracking it, measuring it properly.
And I believe that this would be the first thing to tackle worldwide.
There is also, like, if we take many of the hotels that are actually pursuing our certification, they find solutions in actually pursuing the methodology. Five, they need a certain, let's say they need some guidance, which actually the pledge is giving.
So tracking is number one. And secondly, finding the proper tools, the proper methodologies to actually achieve the reduction and prevention.
[00:32:45] Speaker K: Margo, thank you so much for that. David, from your perspective, the Caribbean faces.
[00:32:50] Speaker N: Can you hear me?
[00:32:51] Speaker K: Yes, we heard you. Thank you.
Are you hearing me?
I think we got some feedback, David. The Caribbean faces a unique combination of high food import dependency we, our import bill is very, very high. Rising food costs as well as vulnerability to effects like climate change.
What lessons from the international food waste reduction efforts are most relevant that the Caribbean can adopt?
[00:33:27] Speaker M: I'm not quite sure if they can hear me, but I love that all of us are in agreement that tracking and measuring food waste is the number one thing we should do. We hadn't even talked previously and we're all.
[00:33:37] Speaker N: Exactly.
Yeah, exactly. No, no, I agree.
[00:33:40] Speaker K: David, are you hearing me now?
[00:33:43] Speaker L: David?
[00:33:44] Speaker M: Yes, I can hear you.
[00:33:46] Speaker K: Okay. I was asking, what are some of the international methodologies that the Caribbean can adopt in its food waste, you know, in its bid to prevent food waste?
[00:34:01] Speaker M: Well, if we. It depends on the sector. So Stefan mentioned the hospitality sector. If you are a hotel or resort, go to hotel kitchen.org My colleagues at WWF and WRAP put together a suite of resources. We're talking checklists, view list videos on how to reduce food waste in hotels.
If you are a retailer, work with your forecast and demand planning team and help them understand that the work that they're doing is not just for the benefit of the business, but is also helping the planet.
And I won't go point by point because the solutions span from manufacturing, retail, hospitality and food service.
All of it is tracking and getting buy in from executive leadership. So what that does is the, the relationship between tracking and buy in is if you can build the business case and track the, the food waste you're preventing in economic terms, business leadership will understand the value. So it's hard to pick one framework other than tracking and using the tracking in a way that it resonates with leadership in a business.
[00:35:31] Speaker K: Yeah.
[00:35:31] Speaker L: Yes, thank you for that.
[00:35:36] Speaker K: We usually talk about food security.
I think you might be hearing a lot of feedback. One second.
I wonder if it's fixed now. Is it better now?
[00:35:50] Speaker L: It's a bit. Well, I don't know. The echo is still really bad, but I think I can hear you, so please go ahead.
[00:35:57] Speaker K: Okay. We often talk about food security
[00:36:02] Speaker M: by
[00:36:02] Speaker K: producing more food to become more food secure.
Should we be placing, are we placing enough emphasis on reducing food waste and food importance?
[00:36:15] Speaker L: Well, I think on that point, I think you should be placing emphasis on both, actually preventing, of course, but of course reducing your import as well. But it goes hand by hand.
I mean, at the end of the day. So, I mean, globally, 90% of the food available to consumers is being wasted today. So for an island, you know, I mean, improve importing its own food, providing waste is definitely the cheapest way to get new supply. Right. So this is probably where you would put your emphasis, preventing food. Because, of course, if you would do that, there is no land, no shipping, no foreign exchange. And by the way, you're going to be eventually reducing your food import. So, I mean, they are of equal importance. But if you think about where to start, you always start with prevention, especially in, you know, in an island. I mean, for an island like, you know, the Caribbean, where a lot of food is being imported.
Could you hear me fine?
[00:37:21] Speaker K: Yes, thank you very much, Stephen. I'm gonna. I'm gonna put a pause on our panel discussion so we can move around the other panel discussion on the stage, fix our technical issues, and we can come back in a bit.
Thank you very much, David, Sifid and Margot, and thank you all very much for.
[00:37:41] Speaker B: All right, so with that being said, we are set in a few moments to bring on the minister. The Permanent Secretary will be coming on now.
[00:37:51] Speaker C: Morning, everyone, again, and thank you for your patience. You know, these technical difficulties, I mean, you gotta give the organizers a round of applause. I.
[00:38:00] Speaker E: To.
[00:38:00] Speaker C: Would like. Like to give them. I mean, it's at this time because of. I mean, it's the first one. You know, this is the first time we're gonna have those little teething problems. Are we gonna work those things through? All right, it is the first one. I promise you guys in 2027 when we come back, we ain't got this.
We. We had this, but not this. We will have this, but not this. That is Trini lingo. For those of you that know Trinidadian. That's how we describe talk. We will have this, but not this. All right, we got you. The technical difficulties and the teething problems will know more. All right, I have to bring on the. To get the remarks from the parliamentary secretary in the Ministry of Public Utilities.
And I have a nice introduction for that individual. Somebody could just pass me my cell phone quickly. I will be able to properly introduce our next speaker.
All right, Ms. Shivana, if I got that correct, Sam was elected to the House of Representatives as a member for Komooto Manzanillo in April of 2025. She was sworn in as Parliamentary Secretary in the Ministry of Public Utilities on May 3. Born and raised in Little is academically distinguished as she holds the Master of Science in Occupational and Environmental Safety and Health and a Bachelor of Science in Biology and Environmental and Natural Resources Management.
She also demonstrated her expertise in ensuring environmental compliance across different sectors, inclusive of the oil and gas construction and quarrying industries in Trinidad and Tobago. Now, despite all of her Achievements. The Member of Parliament for Komuto Manzanillo is still determined to broaden her reach and make meaningful contributions in the lives of citizens in the country as well as her constituency. Please welcome the Honorable Shivana Sam.
[00:40:19] Speaker B: That being said, the Caribbean Food Waste Summit team is getting set on stage as the Permanent Secretary is set to deliver her feature address, her remarks, and that is about to take place now. If you're just joining us, we are here live at the Radisson Hotel Hotel in Port of Spain for the Caribbean Food Waste Summit, the first of its kind, the inauguration of it. It's going to be an annual event. This is the first one in 2026.
So we get set for her to deliver her feature REM and that is going to take place right now.
The next speaker, if you're just joining us, would be the Parliamentary Secretary in the Ministry of Public Utilities, the Hon.
Shivana Sam.
We just have some small technical, difficult problems to hash out. But as was mentioned a few moments ago, it is the first one and sometimes these feeding problems happen. A lot of persons are quite understanding here in the room. They're just like, you know, it's fine, we understand, you know, we know how these things are. Technical difficulties arise. So I think we are set now to listen to her remarks.
[00:41:47] Speaker C: Let's go stateside.
[00:41:51] Speaker P: Good morning to our host, Mishan Coffee Young.
His Excellency Ren Hongyan, Ambassador of the People's Republic of China.
Ms. Michelle Ann Thomas, Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of agriculture and Fisheries, Mrs. Seiko Allen, CEO Global Trinidad and Tobago.
Rhea Ramdeen, Acting CEO of Swimcall.
Members of the media, other specially invited guests. Ladies and gentlemen, good morning.
Before I begin, please allow me to convey my apologies on behalf of my Minister, Minister Bari Padarath, Minister of Public Utilities, who sends his regards and best wishes for a successful summit.
It is indeed an honor to contribute to the Caribbean Food Waste Summit 2026, the first of its kind, being held right here in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago.
As Parliamentary Secretary in the Ministry of Public Utilities, the line Ministry with the responsibility for oversight of the Trinidad and Tobago Solid Waste Co. Ltd. Better known as Swim Call. It is important that government remains actively engaged in this conversation.
But today I do not want us to speak about food only in terms of tons, percentages and statistics.
I want us to think about the Caribbean kitchen table.
Think about the mother preparing Sunday lunch already, considering what remains can become Monday's meal.
Think about the fruit peels and vegetable scraps that were never automatically regarded as rubbish but were put to another use.
And when something was no longer useful to one household, it was often given to another.
These practices were so deeply woven into everyday Caribbean life that we did not necessarily call them sustainability.
But today we know better.
We simply understood that resources had value, that waste should be avoided, and that what we had should be used wisely.
In many ways, Caribbean people understood one of the fundamental principles of what we now call the circular economy.
Waste nothing.
Make something from what you have and share what you cannot use.
Today we have given these principles new language.
The circular economy seeks to keep resources in use for as long as possible, reduce waste and recover value from materials that might otherwise be discarded.
But as we look to the future, we should also recognize the wisdom that had that has been with us all along.
Because this is not simply about how we manage waste. It is about how we value resources.
Food is fundamental to human survival.
Yet estimates included figures reported by the United nations in 2025 indicate that global food loss and waste exceeded 1.05 billion tonnes annually, almost one fifth of all food available to consumers at the retail, food, service and household levels.
Behind that figure are enormous amounts of wasted water, land, energy, labor and investment.
Here in Trinidad and Tobago, SwimCo's waste characterization work has estimated that approximately 154,000 tons of food waste enter our waste stream annually.
Food and other organic materials constitute a significant proportion of what we send to our landfills.
This is more than a waste management challenge. It is a national social and environmental imperative.
Allowing edible food and valuable organic resources to go to waste is just unacceptable.
We must act decisively to move towards zero food waste.
And as a small island state, our land is limited and must be protected for harvest, housing, agriculture and productive development.
When food and organic waste are sent to landfills, we are not simply filling a hole in the ground. We are using valuable land and contributing to greenhouse gas emissions, including methane.
So the question before us is not simply how we dispose of our waste.
The more important question we need to ask is how do we stop treating valuable resources as waste in the first place?
This is where the idea of the regenerative economy takes us one step further.
This circular economy asks us to reduce waste, reuse resources and recover value.
The regenerative economy asks a deeper question.
What if our economic activity did not simply take less from the environment, but actually helped to restore and renew it?
Instead of asking only how can we reduce our impact?
The regenerative approach asks, how can we leave our communities or ecosystems and our natural resources healthier and stronger than we found them?
This is a significant shift from doing less harm to actively creating good and this is an important direction for Trinidad and tobago.
The government's 2025 manifesto, adopted as Government's policy framework, expressly references the creation of a regenerative economy, including transforming waste management into a resource recovery and energy production sector.
This includes upgrading waste collection systems, phasing out open air dumping and investing in sanitary landfill solutions enhancing recycling and public private partnerships establishing manufacturing hubs that use recycled materials creating jobs in waste management, energy and advanced manufacturing and providing incentives for businesses investing in green energy and regenerative economy initiatives.
This represents a very important change in how we think about waste.
Waste is not simply something to be removed. It can become a resource, an input, an economic opportunity and in the case of organic waste, a pathway to restoring our soils and strengthening our food systems.
The government, the Ministry of Public Utilities and Sumatra are committed to decisive action.
Our objective must be to implement and expand practical solutions that prevent food waste wherever possible and ensure that what cannot be prevented is appropriately recovered, reused, recycled or composted.
In executing government policy, we will be issuing this week a Request for Information Environmentally sound solutions for collecting, transporting, processing, treating, recovering and disposing of the various solid waste streams in Trinidad and Tobago.
We are not operating in silos. We are taking a holistic stakeholder approach. As waste is everyone's business and as cliche as it sounds, we all have a part to play.
We welcome submissions from CL Environmental Services Ltd. The organizer of this summit, from all of the stakeholders gathered here today, and from regional and international experts in zero waste and resource recovery.
Swimcol has also been directed to expand public education so that households and businesses can take practical steps to reduce, separate, and properly manage organic waste.
But government cannot do this alone, and we know this.
Government has an important role. Yes, and we are creating the conditions for change.
We must strengthen policy, we must support public education, we must facilitate investment and partnerships with the private sector and we must ensure that environmental considerations are integrated into national development planning.
Every part of the food system has a role to play.
Hotels and restaurants can conduct food waste audits and improve inventory, purchasing and portion management.
Supermarkets and distributors can develop safe and effective mechanisms for surplus food recovery and redistribution.
Farmers can benefit from improved storage, transportation and market access, reducing loss before food even reaches consumers.
Schools can teach children about food waste composting and sustainable food practices.
And communities, very importantly, can transform organic waste into useful resources through composting, community gardens and urban agriculture.
This is where environmental responsibility can also become economic opportunities.
And that is why today's zero waste culinary showcase is particularly important.
Caribbean cuisine is built on creativity.
Our food reflects our indigenous African, Indian, Chinese, European and other influences.
Food is part of our culture. It's part of our identity.
Generations before us learned how to take locally available ingredients and transform them into extraordinary dishes.
Our chefs now have an opportunity to apply that same creativity to sustainability.
The question we should continuously ask is how much value can we extract from an ingredient before we decide that it is waste?
And that question should not remain in professional kitchens.
It belongs in hotels, restaurants, schools, community centers and or homes.
We must also encourage our young people, and I see so many of them here today, to view environmental challenges differently.
Food waste can create opportunities for innovation in composting, agriculture, technology, logistics, food recovery, and entrepreneurs entrepreneurship.
Our young people are not simply inheriting our environmental challenges.
They can become the entrepreneurs, the researchers, the educators, and the innovators who help solve them.
Our responsibility is to give them that knowledge, mentorship, and the opportunity to do so.
This summit must therefore take us beyond the culture conversation.
We need measurable objectives.
We need businesses measuring their food waste. We need investment in composting and organic waste recovery. We need stronger public education.
And importantly, we need data because we cannot effectively manage what we do not properly measure.
I therefore commend steel Environmental Services Limited under the leadership of the founder, Ms. Shan Coffee Young, for bringing stakeholders together for this important regional conversation.
Distinguished ladies and gentlemen, perhaps the greatest transformation required is not technological. It is cultural.
We must rediscover something our parents and grandparents already understood.
Food has value.
The land that produced it has value.
The farmer who grew it has value.
The resources used to transport and prepare it have value.
And the money a mother spent purchasing it has value.
When we throw food away, therefore, we throw away more than just water, energy, labor, money, and opportunity.
Let this summit mark a change in how we think.
From waste to resource, from disposal to recovery, from individual action to community responsibility, and from conversation to measurable action.
On behalf of the government of Trinidad and Tobago, I wish the organizers and all participants a productive and successful Caribbean Food Summit.
[00:54:49] Speaker B: We are back for the second part of this panel discussion that's going to happen in a short while. On stage right now, we have a gentleman entertaining the audience. You know, kind of getting everybody back into a groove. He's a compost specialist and his name is Marvin. That's what we have.
[00:55:04] Speaker C: Let's go. Stage size.
[00:55:07] Speaker A: Today to divert your organic material. You'll never hear me call it food waste, because I don't waste it. I turn it into black gold. Soul enhance. Everybody say black gold.
Black gold.
So we divert that from going into our landfills and incinerators. When you burn trash, you create a chemical called carbon dioxide. When you bury trash in the landfill, it creates a chemical called methane gas. And that those sacrifice communities and beat them.
Beat them. Landfill and Beatem gardens are exposed to high rates of asthma and cancer. So we must divert that material from going into the landfills and incinerators.
I operate a youth led food scrap collection service in Baltimore. No one was coming to save us. So our goal is to starve the incinerator in the landfills of that organic material and feed the soil and feed the community.
I created a my first environmental justice spoken word piece about six years ago when my partners took money from the landfills and incinerators.
We are negatively impacted. We live in an area where we had two incinerators. We had the landfill. We have a coal pile right across the street from our recreation center. We have a chemical company, we have gas company, a paint company, all in one community. So we're considered a sacrifice zone. No one was going to come and save us. So I created a poem called how do we spread compost fever to combat climate Change. So here's my piece.
It'll be a long journey down environmental justice road. That smokestack creates cleaner, greener energy is what we were told. In order to shut it down, we must have unity. So I went on a compost mission with the youth to feed the soil and feed the community.
While others took blood money from the incinerator, I remained the environmental OG and stayed to the cold, frustrated.
Being a voice for the voiceless is our goal. We did our research because we poor, we got to breathe in cold. When I think about it, I get frustrated. Why must our organic material be incinerated? Breathing in high levels of methane gas and carbon dioxide must be of the past. So I ask you, how long will this environmental injustice last? We don't have much time. Climate change is happening fast. Composting is a member of this supporting cast. Great for the environment to help reduce harmful greenhouse gas. In my city, environmental racism is dominant. But when you add compost to the soil, it sequesters carbon. It's so great for the climate.
So if your ear is within my range, let's continue to spread compost fever to help combat climate change. This is my first environmental justice poem. So it's just a taste, but remember, compost around is a terrible thing to waste.
I would like for all my youth to stand up in the back all of my youth that are here, that are here. Let's give a big round applause to our future environmental justice leaders of Trinidad.
One of my pieces I speak on.
Today's indomitable youth are impossible to subdue or displace.
We hope we don't bring them to the table to make decisions. So I'm thankful that today we brought today's indomitable youth to the table. So I'm wishing you all the best. Last December, I had an opportunity to visit all Boys school and I got a beautiful serenade from them and also got to see their composting. So remember, we must support our youth in their endeavors with composting. And we must starve the incinerator, feed the soil and feed the community. Thank you so much.
[00:59:06] Speaker C: I got you. Please give him a round of applause. Spoken word.
We, as entrepreneurs, we have one task to do.
To provide food for you, you and even you.
We are worried every day about how the food will taste.
Seldom do we worry about the food and its waste. And that's all I have.
That's all I have. That's all I have.
Yeah. Give out a little insp. Inspiration there and you come up there very quickly.
[00:59:35] Speaker L: All right.
[00:59:36] Speaker C: So as we continue with this summit, very, very important summit, we move on to the framework of Food Waste Action. We have a Moderator with over 30 years of experience advancing sustainable culture and rural development across caricom, bringing expertise in policy and strategic planning, program and project management, stakeholder engagement, advocacy and facilitation. The capacity of building. She has contributed to the national and regional agriculture and industry policies, manage externally funded development projects, and champion the growth and market integration of micro and small agriponeers through inclusive and sustainable approaches. A round of applause for the next moderator, Ms. Diane Francis.
[01:00:40] Speaker O: Thank you very much. Good morning, everybody. Thank you for this warm introduction.
Let me just start by saying I come from a small village in a small island state where whenever my mother put a plate of food on the table, her thing was, make sure you eat. All because there are children elsewhere who have nothing to eat. So I grew up in a gun. Food cannot be wasted. This panel, the conversation. This panel is going to talk about creating a framework for food waste action.
And I am pleased to introduce our panelists on screen.
[01:01:12] Speaker P: We have.
[01:01:14] Speaker O: He is a agri Food Systems project, Food Safety division of the fao.
So his work is all about advancing agricultural systems transformation. The important one here being transformation systems.
Secondly, I'd like to invite Pete.
Pete Pearson. Yes, please.
He's the vice president of the Food Food loss and waste and global initiative and elite in the World Wildlife Fund of the fao.
Again an advocate for food loss and food waste in the circular economy system.
And of course I don't think she needs any introduction, but let's invite Rachel Rennie Gonzalez at Refood Entrepreneur Tran Tobago co founder of Market movers and Design and of course farm to table value chains moving market, table everything about food food is Rachel Rennie.
And finally Tricia Leed, the founder and principal consultant of leadership as an LEID leadership consulting bringing more than 15 years experience in supply chain logistics strategic leadership across Trinidad and Tobago and the Caribbean and New York.
So we have an esteemed panel of folks here who are very versed in the area and without any ado, I'll just say that.
They want us behind the table because you know, we can't eat in front of a table.
Okay, thanks for that. So we're not behind the table. This, the theme of this panel is creating a framework for food waste action.
I would like to point out that words also have meaning, words have power.
So in that theme, I think two of the words have meaning and power. One is action.
In that, yes, we have in a conversation here today, but we need to leave here with some very definitive actions. The first panel, the global panel, gave us a long list of things that we could do.
The other important word in that theme is a framework. Sometimes we do things, do things, do things and there is no cohesiveness in what we do. And therefore in order for us to have a framework for action, we need to know what is the bigger picture. We need to have a cohesive approach so that when we do individual and independent things, they're all contributing to a bigger goal. So the issue for this panel really is what is the, what is your concept when you hear framework for action food waste, what comes first in your mind? And because there are disadvantages not being in the room with us, I would like to first go to Jacopo. Can you please confirm that you can hear and you can respond that your audio is working and give us in your first thought. What do you think about when you hear creating a framework for food waste action?
Can you hear us?
[01:04:27] Speaker E: Yes.
[01:04:29] Speaker O: We're not hearing you though.
Okay, while Yakub, while he's waiting to sort out the audio, I will just go to Rachel, same question.
[01:04:44] Speaker K: Can you hear me?
[01:04:44] Speaker H: Yeah.
So I mean the word action for me and technical.
[01:04:50] Speaker J: I am so sorry, just trying to figure out some of the technical stuff on our end.
[01:04:54] Speaker O: But we're hearing so Just give us one minute and then we'll cue you in.
[01:04:59] Speaker N: Thank you.
[01:05:02] Speaker H: Okay, when I think of action, I think possibility, right? Action is to taking one step forward. But if I don't know the rules or the how things work, it's really difficult for me to take action. Right.
I mean, in any sort of framework, we need governance. We need to know the rules that we're playing by. It needs to be clear, it needs to be direct.
And governance comes from leadership, Right? So caricom, you know, how do we feed on that governance?
Another component for me would be legislative. Like, you know, you see things like Best buy dates being changed in countries like California and states like California where, you know, healthy food like a salad, if you were to, you know, have a Best Buy date, you would quicker throw that away than a pack of plant potato chips. Let's see, that is, you know, the same expiration date. And why do we perceive fresh food or healthy food needing to be disposed sooner than other types of foods? And legislative can protect against that. Protect against best before best by dates help consumers and retailers, Retailers sell at a more profitable price. And we don't have to ban the do special discounts on foods that are just as nutritionally fresh as a bag of potato chips. Let's say finance. Of course we need finance. We need an investment into the space.
And without that, we won't get infrastructure, we won't get storage, we won't get, you know, post harvest handling is where most of our food is. Waste happens in the agriculture sector.
So how do we have that infrastructure to support that? So when I think of a framework, it's how do we protect food systems at every stage of what they go through?
[01:07:06] Speaker O: Thanks, Rachel. Can we go back to Jacopo?
Okay, let us flip the script. Pete, same question. I remembered what the moderator said. This the host said this morning, when we're talking about action frameworks, we have youth in the crowd, we have people listening on the radio station. So we really need to have a language where everybody think, feel involved and included in any action for management and control of food waste in Toronto and Tobago.
[01:07:35] Speaker K: Pete, can you hear me?
[01:07:37] Speaker Q: Yeah. So I'm gonna make this really simple.
I've been working on this issue for 10 years for World Wildlife Fund.
This is an issue.
I don't think that money solves every problem in the world. But this is an issue that dramatically needs more funding and we have to find financing for what we are attempting to do.
I am constantly working with idb, like there is a lot of money out There from a development bank standpoint.
And what I've learned is that it's a little pessimistic, but everybody's got to make their flip.
You know, everybody has to make a little bit of a profit on loans and money that they give out. And so we have to prove that the solutions in food waste reduction can be profitable.
We have to prove that these solutions can create jobs. I was so inspired by your poem.
And I think it starts with entrepreneurs and people like you that are helping to create that business case at a local level, at a community level as to why food is always food. It's food for people, it's food for soil, it's food for animals. Like, we have got to change the way that we think about food.
And we have to demand more from global financial institutions that we invest in this. And I'm not talking about hundreds of thousands of dollars.
[01:09:01] Speaker O: Right.
[01:09:01] Speaker Q: We did an estimate to show what it takes to take the top 200 cities towards composting solutions.
That's $160 billion over the next 10 years that's required. These are not small ticket investments. And so one of the things I would be really love to see the Caribbean island nations do is don't just think about this as something that Trinidad and Tobago needs to invest in, consolidate your efforts and work at a regional level to be really going after that financing and demand that we get the money that is needed to invest in this problem. And if we all start doing that, I know for World Wildlife Fund and that's why I'm here, show me the money. Like I am all about figuring out how we find the money to do this work. Because it's a global imperative.
[01:09:51] Speaker O: Thank you, Pete. And before we go to Tricia, I would like to reiterate what Pete said. Food is not just food for humans, it's food for animals, it's food for the soil.
So as we speak here today, there is a Caribbean Week of Agriculture happening right now in Jamaica where they call changing the face of Agri food systems. So this conversation is happening at the same time when you have the policymakers and the stakeholders discussing the future of agriculture. And that has to include what we do about food waste. So I would like to turn over to Tricia.
[01:10:23] Speaker R: Hello.
[01:10:24] Speaker O: Yes. Same question. In terms of framework for action, I like simple.
[01:10:30] Speaker R: I have a framework that I've used in my organization as a consultant.
Measure, prevent and move.
Measure the waste which people have spoken about, prevent it, which really you should try to do first and then move it, because with a framework as simple as that. You can implement it on an organizational level, a nation level, or a Caribbean level.
I have tried myself to measure waste, and it's difficult. People say, oh, measure it, forecast it. Getting into the numbers, not only the finances, but how do you measure it and how do we use technologies, measurement. That to me is the future.
Understanding how we could use technology to get that data, no matter how much waste you may have, and then readjust your forecast so that your waste is minimized before it even gets to the point that it's a larger issue.
So that would be my framework that I would recommend. And I would love to see the Caribbean get together and work out logistics that allows you. Sorry about that. That allows persons to understand how much surplus they have between islands. Understanding that on a Caribbean level, and then coming together to see how you can break down barriers of logistics and risk of transportation to move the food easily from island to island so that you could minimize the waste. So those are my. That's my framework that I use. I even use it at home. And as a consultant, I've implemented such strategies with my clients. Thank you.
[01:12:13] Speaker O: Great, thank you. Tricia is yet the popo on. Is he able to speak? If not, we'll move on until he can come on stream.
So the initial conversation was about understanding the bigger picture and where the various diverse actions fit into a bigger picture for food waste. But we are making an assumption that everybody in the room, everybody listening on the radio station, understand or have the same understanding of what food waste is. So I think before we even measure, I think we need to ensure that everybody in this society understands what it is meant by food waste. So are we all working on the same basis? Right before we can measure, before we can prevent, and before we can move? And yes, finance is important because finance moves logistics. Without finance, you have no logistics. And especially for logistics in terms of collecting the food waste, whether it's from gated communities or from remote villages in south or wherever, you have to find a way to get it to one place in order for us to be able to convert it and transform it into something else. So the transformation issues on food waste, understanding what they are and the actions are important. So let's come down to the actions. We've established that a framework has to exist. Regionalism is a part of the framework. Financing is part of the framework. Logistics is part of the framework. Inclusion of the ordinary citizens, the households, the young people, the students at home must part of the framework. Because young folks, if you do not grow up or do not go through school understanding what food waste is and how you can reduce it is not going to graduate a into society. So when you go to your cafeterias and you don't like this, the best
[01:13:47] Speaker A: insight Instant feedback Accountability the all new Talk Radio Freedom 106.5.
