Brussels, 16 October 2025 – The European project SISTERS, funded by the EU, is transforming the way retailers and wholesalers manage food waste at the point of sale. Through biobased and compostable packaging, dynamic labelling systems with smart pricing algorithms, and a Seal of Excellence for distribution centres, the project offers practical tools to improve efficiency, reduce losses, and increase sustainability in food distribution.
SISTERS develops solutions specifically for distribution:
- Innovative packaging – active films and rigid containers from renewable sources that are home-compostable, reducing single-use plastics.
- Dynamic labelling – real-time price adjustments based on remaining shelf life, with consistent and transparent information in-store.
- Best practice guidelines for distribution, with ten direct recommendations – designed to help implement more sustainable and circular business models. SISTERS EU Project PRESS RELEASE
- SISTERS Seal of Excellence – a label that identifies retailers applying the Decalogue of Best Practices: from stock optimisation to surplus management and donations.
“World Food Day reminds us that what happens in supermarkets and at home matters. With SISTERS, innovation meets everyday shopping so that less good food ends up in the bin,” says Carolina Peñalva, project coordinator (AITIIP Technology Centre).
EROSKI´s workshops and the #WasteLessRetail campaign
SISTERS’ distribution-focused advances are being validated with leading retailers such as EROSKI. On 2 October in Bilbao, EROSKI held a technical workshop focused on innovations in packaging, traceability, and food logistics. Today, 16 October and World Food Day, in Vitoria-Gasteiz (Spain), EROSKI is hosting a second workshop presenting SISTERS’ main tools for distribution: bio-based packaging, the Decalogue of Best Practices, the Seal of Excellence, and the dynamic labelling system. On this occasion, some consumers have also been invited, with the aim of bringing them closer to the solutions that will soon be reflected in their daily shopping.
These events are part of the ongoing #WasteLessRetail campaign, which involves retailers, wholesalers, and consumers through workshops, media articles, social media activity, and a podcast—showcasing how SISTERS innovations translate into daily shopping and measurable waste reduction.
About SISTERS
SISTERS (Systemic Innovations for a Sustainable Reduction of the European Food Waste) is an EU Horizon 2020 Green Deal project with 18 partners in 8 countries. It tackles food loss and waste across the entire value chain—from farms to consumers—through innovations in short supply chains, smart logistics, bio-packaging, retail practices, and consumer awareness.
This project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under Grant Agreement No. 101037796
Find out more on: www.sistersproject.eu
Contacts: Africa Pardavila, Direttrice della Comunicazione di Innovarum – Leader WP8 Disseminazione | africa.pardavila@innovarum.es | +34 615860178