Halving Food Waste by 2030: A Conversation with Tristan Butt, CEO of End Food Waste Australia

In this podcast episode, Tristan Butt, the CEO of End Food Waste Australia, shares insights into his background and the organization's mission to halve food waste in Australia by 2030. Tristan discusses the economic and social impacts of food waste, highlighting Australia's annual waste of 7.6 million tons of food and a $37 billion economic cost. He explains the multi-faceted approach of End Food Waste Australia, which includes research, policy, business action, and consumer behavior. Tristan also touches on consumer campaigns like 'The Great Un Waste' and the importance of industry collaboration, including initiatives like the Australian Food Pact. He emphasizes the significant opportunity for businesses to save costs and improve profitability while contributing to environmental sustainability. The discussion also covers support for small businesses, the importance of benchmarking and reporting, and innovative ways to repurpose food waste.

01:35 The Mission to Halve Food Waste by 2030

02:36 Current Progress and Consumer Campaigns

07:11 Engaging Small Businesses in Food Waste Reduction

10:54 Innovative Uses for Food Waste

15:48 International Models and Future Plans

More About Tristan

Tristan Butt is a purpose-driven CEO and Board Director with 25+ years of leadership across food & beverage, FMCG, retail, and ecommerce in the UK, Europe, APAC, and the US.
He has led transformational growth at both global giants (L’Oréal, Unilever, Mars, Amazon, Woolworths) and high-growth ventures—responsible for portfolios spanning 100+ categories, 1,400+ stores, and $3B+ in revenue. His career bridges supplier and retailer, public and private, global and local—anchored by sharp commercial strategy, operational discipline, and an unrelenting customer focus.
As a leader, Tristan is recognised for building high-impact, values-aligned teams that move with pace, think boldly, and deliver lasting outcomes. He brings clarity, ambition, and rigour to complex challenges, empowering people to raise the bar - leaving organisations stronger than they were found.
Currently serving as Chief Executive Officer of End Food Waste Australia, Tristan is driving national food system transformation to deliver environmental, economic, and social impact.
He has also partnered with CEOs & Boards in scaling consumer brands through advisory, NED and investor roles.
He is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors (GAICD) with a Law degree (LLB Hons) from the University of Birmingham UK.

Links:

https://www.honeyandfox.com.au/

https://thegreatunwaste.com.au/

https://endfoodwaste.com.au/

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Most consumers can't tell the difference between “best before” and “use by” dates on food and use them interchangeably.

In this episode of Food Waste Matters, Dr Joanne Freeman sits down with Associate Professor Lukas Parker from RMIT to delve into the intricacies of food labelling and how clear instructions could help mitigate food waste.

Lukas is based in the School of Media and Communication at RMIT University, where he leads 3C, Communication and Change Co-lab. He is also a member of End Food Waste Australia, leading the National Date Labelling and Storage Advice Project.

Specifically, his team worked with End Food Waste Australia to collect data from 125 consumer interviews, which explored how consumers use (or do not use) existing food datelabelling and storage advice to determine food freshness. Tune into this episode as Jo and Lukas discuss key findings and information, including:

· Confusion about existing labels and how to deal with food freshness, reliability, and storage.

· How advice such as ‘store in a cool, dry place’ was interpreted as vague, unhelpful, and less likely to be perceived as reliable or trustworthy for more humid climates.

· Differences in demographics when making decisions about food quality and waste.

· The usefulness of food dates to manage food at home and from a businessperspective.

· Riskier food categories and the differences in discernment when assessing if food can still be consumed.

Date labels are not straightforward, and this episode touches on key points from consumers and researchers alike. To find out more about the national date labelling and storage advice (phase 1) please visit https://endfoodwaste.com.au/projects/national-date-labelling-and-storage-advice-phase-1/. Additional details about 3C (Communication and Change Co-lab) are also available at https://www.rmit.edu.au/about/schools-colleges/media-and-communication/research/communication-change-colab.

If you would like to reach out to Lukas he can be reached on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/drlukas/.

This podcast is brought to you by Honey & Fox, whose passion is food and the people who produce it. Honey & Foxworks with fishers, farmers and small food businesses to help them find and sell to their perfect customers – people who will buy without questioning the price. Find out more at www.honeyandfox.com.au.

This podcast is supported by End Food Waste Australia, which is leading impactful and research-informed food wasteactions. To learn more about how they are working toward a more sustainable future, please visit ⁠www.endfoodwaste.com.au⁠.