In a press release issued today, Carnival Corporation announced that Jan Swartz, executive vice president of strategic operations for Carnival Corporation has joined the powerhouse ranks of Champions 12.3 – the international coalition of nearly 40 leaders across government, business and civil society dedicated to accelerating progress toward achieving Target 12.3 of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals on food loss and waste. Swartz is the organization’s first Champion from the cruise industry.
“It’s an honor to be selected to work alongside other like-minded leaders committed to steering the world toward a more sustainable future,” said Swartz. “As industry leaders in reducing food loss and waste across our operation, Carnival Corporation realizes that collaboration leads to great solutions. I’m eager to work with leaders across several sectors to find ways to leverage each other’s learnings and expertise.”
“We are pleased that Jan will be joining the Champions 12.3 coalition. The cruise industry is an important part of the travel and hospitality sector, and as such, it has a vital role to play in helping reduce food loss and waste globally,” said Dr. Liz Goodwin OBE, member of Champions 12.3. “Jan brings a unique insight into the daily challenges of tackling food loss and waste in a globally dispersed organization operating 24/7, 365 days a year and serving millions of guests each year. She is ideally placed to represent the efforts on food waste reduction across Carnival Corporation’s nine brands and share best practices across the industry.”
In addition to Swartz’s new role as Champion, Carnival Corporation’s Italian cruise line, Costa Cruises, has been a member of the Friends of Champions 12.3 network since 2018. One component of Costa Cruises’ food waste reduction strategy takes place in ports of call throughout Italy and France. The Italian cruise line partners with local food banks to give fully prepared, unserved food to local communities and has donated more than 300,000 servings of food since 2017. While Champions 12.3 is made up of executive leaders across various business, government and civil sectors, the Friends of Champions network is a wider group of nearly 150 organizations working on specific initiatives designed to drive action toward the collective mission of reducing global food waste.
Swartz’s invitation to join the coalition comes shortly after Carnival Corporation announced it has achieved a 38% reduction in food waste per passenger relative to its 2019 baseline as part of its circular economy objectives to use fewer resources, produce less waste, and maximize recycling. The achievement places the global cruise company on track to reach its goal to reduce food waste by 50% per person by 2030 compared to its 2019 baseline. Carnival Corporation teams across several areas have collaborated to develop creative ways to proactively reduce food waste aboard its ships while still creating memorable experiences for guests. Culinary teams across its fleet track dining trends and adjust the amount of food prepared and served while also educating guests and crew alike on doing their part to help reduce food waste onboard. This effort is further supported by the creation of recipes that use as much of every ingredient as possible. Carnival Corporation’s investment in advanced food loss reduction practices at every level places the company as an industry leader in food waste management.
