Overview

• Germany discards almost 11 million tonnes of food annually, the agriculture minister told dpa.
• About 60 percent of discarded food comes from private households, according to the ministry.
• The nationwide "Zu gut für die Tonne" awareness week starts Monday, with initial events held over the weekend.
• Consumer advocates cite routine overproduction and the removal of items up to five days before best-before dates, and they report food poverty drives some people to retrieve discarded food.
• A new push to legalize "containern" is not planned after an earlier attempt faltered when states failed to agree, as unanimity was required for procedural rule changes.