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State of the Art
A living summary of what is known about green and digital skills in food and hospitality — the data, research and EU policies GreenPlate builds on, kept up to date as new studies and policies appear.
On this page
Background
In numbers
Policy context
Research findings
National perspectives
Gaps & responses
News & reading
Sources
Background
Sustainable food systems need kitchens that know how
With the Farm to Fork Strategy, the European Commission set out to make the EU food system fair, healthy and environmentally friendly. In 2025 the revised Waste Framework Directive turned food waste reduction into binding targets for 2030 — including for restaurants and food services.
Restaurants, hotels, canteens and caterers are where much of Europe's food is prepared and served. Their staff decide every day what is bought, how much is cooked, how it is stored and what is thrown away — so what food and hospitality training teaches shapes how ready the sector is for the new rules.
What is still missing: sustainability in food and hospitality VET is fragmented and often optional, there is no shared European competence reference for the sector, and green kitchen skills cannot yet be certified in a way employers recognise. GreenPlate closes these three gaps.
It does not start from zero: GreenPlate builds on existing European frameworks — GreenComp, DigComp, EntreComp, the EQF, ESCO and Europass — and turns them into practical kitchen skills that schools can teach and employers can recognise.
129 kgof food was wasted per person in the EU in 2024 — 57.9 million tonnes in totalSource: Eurostat, 29 September 2026 ↗
12%of EU food waste in 2024 came from restaurants and food services — about 15 kg per personSource: Eurostat, env_wasfw ↗
−30%food waste per person by 2030 in retail and consumption, including restaurants and food services, against 2021–2023Source: Directive (EU) 2025/1892 ↗
In numbers
The partner countries at a glance
How the eight GreenPlate countries compare with the EU average on food waste and digital skills. Latest Eurostat data, retrieved October 2026. Countries measure food waste in different ways, so compare with care.
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Policy context
The European frameworks we build on
GreenPlate contributes to EU priorities for sustainable food systems, less food waste, and vocational education that prepares people for the green and digital transitions. New policies are added here as they are adopted.
GreenComp: 12 competences in four areas
The European sustainability competence framework (JRC, 2022) is the reference for the Food Sector GreenComp Framework, which translates it into 30 descriptors for kitchens and food services at EQF 3, 4 and 5.
Embodying sustainability values
- Valuing sustainability
- Supporting fairness
- Promoting nature
Seeing why food choices matter — for people, for fairness along the supply chain and for nature.
Embracing complexity in sustainability
- Systems thinking
- Critical thinking
- Problem framing
Understanding a kitchen as part of a food system, from field and supplier to plate and waste bin.
Envisioning sustainable futures
- Futures literacy
- Adaptability
- Exploratory thinking
Imagining how menus, sourcing and service could work differently — and adapting as rules and markets change.
Acting for sustainability
- Political agency
- Collective action
- Individual initiative
Taking action — in your own station, with your team and in the business you work for.
12competences
Competence frameworks behind the GreenPlate certification
Research findings
What the research shows
GreenPlate is based on a needs analysis the partners carried out while preparing the project: institutional self-assessments in all 11 partner organisations, reviews of national VET qualifications and food sector occupational standards in eight countries, and consultations with employers, VET educators and institutional leaders.
8countries in the needs analysis
280+employers, educators and leaders consulted
11partner institutions self-assessed
6structural challenges identified
1
Sustainability is an optional extra in food and hospitality VET
The national reviews found no partner country where sustainability is mandatory content in food sector initial VET at EQF 3, 4 or 5. Where it exists, it is an optional module without shared learning outcomes or quality assurance.
Source: GreenPlate needs analysis, 2025 →2
Employers want proof of green skills
In the consultations, most employers named the lack of a recognised, portable certificate as the main reason they do not invest in sustainability training — and said they would recruit people with verified green credentials.
Source: GreenPlate stakeholder consultations, 2025 →3
Food waste in kitchens is a skills and organisation problem
Planning, purchasing, portioning, storage and monitoring drive most of the waste in professional kitchens — all things that people can learn to do differently. That makes training one of the most direct levers.
Source: GreenPlate needs analysis and literature review, 2025 →4
Green skills need digital skills
Waste tracking, energy monitoring and sustainability reporting are increasingly digital. Yet in five of the eight partner countries, fewer people have basic digital skills than the EU average of 60%.
Source: Eurostat, 2025 ↗
Theory of change
How GreenPlate turns the findings into change
NeedFood and hospitality workers lack recognised green and digital competences to meet new EU food waste and sustainability rules.
InputsThe expertise of 11 partners in VET, research, certification, enterprise networks and EdTech; Erasmus+ funding; employers and learners in eight countries.
ActivitiesIn three phases — research and design (2027), development and piloting (mid-2027 to spring 2029), validation and legacy (2029): skills research, certification, curriculum, the MOOC and pilots, Local Hubs and the Green Kitchen Challenge, valorisation and policy work.
OutputsThe Food Sector GreenComp Framework, three occupational profiles, 30 learning units, the MOOC and open resources, a certification scheme and eight Local Hubs.
Outcomes350+ learners trained, 200+ certificates, 50+ work-based placements, and VET institutions embedding the results in their programmes.
National perspectives
Eight countries, eight starting points
The needs analysis showed different starting points in each partner country. Each partner brings its national context, its expertise and earlier projects that GreenPlate builds on — and the European Union sets the common frame.
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Gaps and responses
See the results
From gaps to what GreenPlate delivers
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News and further reading
All project news →
What is new
The latest from the project, plus studies and reports from across Europe.
Further reading from around Europe
Sources
References
- Eurostat (2025). Food waste and food waste prevention – estimates ↗. Statistics Explained.
- Eurostat. Food waste and food waste prevention by NACE Rev. 2 activity ↗ (env_wasfw), data for 2023.
- Eurostat. Individuals' level of digital skills (from 2021 onwards) ↗ (isoc_sk_dskl_i21), data for 2025.
- European Commission (2020). A Farm to Fork Strategy for a fair, healthy and environmentally-friendly food system ↗. COM(2020) 381.
- European Parliament and Council (2025). Directive (EU) 2025/1892 amending Directive 2008/98/EC on waste — food waste reduction targets ↗.
- European Commission (2025). A Vision for Agriculture and Food ↗. COM(2025) 75.
- European Commission (2025). The Union of Skills ↗. Communication of 5 March 2025.
- Council of the European Union (2022). Council Recommendation of 16 June 2022 on a European approach to micro-credentials for lifelong learning and employability ↗. 2022/C 243/02.
- Council of the European Union (2020). Council Recommendation of 24 November 2020 on vocational education and training (VET) for sustainable competitiveness, social fairness and resilience ↗. 2020/C 417/01.
- Bianchi, G., Pisiotis, U., & Cabrera Giraldez, M. (2022). GreenComp — The European sustainability competence framework ↗. Joint Research Centre.
- Vuorikari, R., Kluzer, S., & Punie, Y. (2022). DigComp 2.2: The Digital Competence Framework for Citizens ↗. Joint Research Centre.
- United Nations Environment Programme (2024). Food Waste Index Report 2024 ↗.
- GreenPlate consortium (2025). Needs analysis carried out for the GreenPlate proposal: partner self-assessments, national VET reviews and stakeholder consultations in eight countries. Internal document.
Recent updates
How this page has changed
- Added three charts with the latest Eurostat data for the partner countries — food waste per person, food waste from restaurants and food services, and basic digital skills — and an overview of the 12 GreenComp competences.
- Added the binding 2030 food waste targets from Directive (EU) 2025/1892.
- First version published, based on the needs analysis for the project application and the EU policies behind it.
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