Food Waste: Impact on People, the Planet and the Economy

Hellmann’s goal is to inspire and enable 100 million people around the world every year to be more resourceful with their food, so they waste less. This is part of the brand’s support of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal of reducing food waste by 50% by 2030. During this session, Herrish Patel highlights the work Hellmann’s has taken to help raise awareness of food waste and the actions they have developed to help fight it.

The panel features Emily Broad-Lieb, the Faculty Director of the Harvard Law School’s Food Law and Policy Clinic, which is working with Hellmann’s to help enact policy change at a federal level. This includes legislative policy for the standardization and clarity of food date labels -- one of the most common drivers of at-home waste.

Also on the panel  Dana Gunders, ReFED’s Executive Director and Sam Kass. Ms. Gunders is a national expert on food waste and one of the first to bring to light just how much food is lost throughout the food system. Mr. Kass served as President Barack Obama’s Senior Policy Advisor for Nutrition Policy and as an Assistant White House Chef.

The panelists discuss the detrimental impacts that food waste has on people, the planet and the economy and actions we can take both at home and at a federal level to help combat it.

Presented By

About The Speakers

Herrish Patel |  General Manager - Nutrition, North America, Hellmann's, Unilever

Herrish Patel is General Manager - Nutrition, North America Unilever. Before this role, he was EVP East Europe and a global market executive team member. Herrish was responsible for 20 East European countries from Poland to Greece, where he successfully delivered five consecutive years of growth. Before that, he worked in Unilever ANZ, CDVP & GM New Zealand. During his Unilever 21 years, he gained valuable experience working across all continents worldwide. Herrish graduated from the University of Cardiff in the UK with BSc (Hons.) in Economics & Management Studies. Herrish and his wife of 22 years, Toral, have two daughters: Nyah 20 and Sayana 13.

Dana Gunders |  Executive Director, ReFED

Dana Gunders serves as ReFED’s Executive Director. Dana is a national expert on food waste and one of the first to bring to light just how much food is lost throughout the food system. For almost a decade, she was a Senior Scientist at the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC). She then launched Next Course, LLC to strategically advise on the topic. Some of her career highlights include authoring the landmark Wasted report and Waste-Free Kitchen Handbook, launching the Save the Food campaign with the Ad Council, testifying in Congress, consulting to Google, appearing on Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, and being a founding Board Member of ReFED.

Emily Broad Leib | Clinical Professor of Law, Harvard Law School's Food Law and Policy Clinic

Emily Broad Leib is a Clinical Professor of Law and Founding Director of the Harvard Law School Food Law and Policy Clinic, the nation’s first law school clinic devoted to providing legal and policy solutions to the health, economic, and environmental challenges facing our food system. Working directly with clients and communities, Broad Leib champions community-led food system change, reduction in food waste, food security and access to healthy foods, and equity and sustainability in food production. Broad Leib received her B.A. from Columbia University and her J.D. from Harvard Law School, cum laude.

Sam Kass | Former White House Chef and Senior Policy Advisor for Nutrition