Spain fights food waste with supermarket fines and doggy bags

Minister says waste weighs on everyone's conscience' as draft measures go to MPs for approval

Spain is aiming to crack down on food waste, with draft legislation setting out stiff fines for supermarkets that bin leftovers and requirements for bars and restaurants to offer doggy bags so that customers can take home leftovers.

The goal of the draft bill, adopted on Tuesday by Spain's Socialist-led government, is to reduce the figure of 1,300 tonnes of food wasted annually across the country, said Luis Planas, Spain's agricultural, fisheries and food minister. That figure equates to 31kg a person.