The International Conference on Food Loss and Waste opened on Friday afternoon in Jinan, capital of east China's Shandong Province.

Set around the theme of reducing food loss and food waste, and promoting global food security, the conference aims to establish a platform for multi-party dialogue on food loss.

A total of 150 representatives of 49 countries, international organizations, enterprises and non-governmental organizations around the world attended the conference and passed an initiative on food loss and waste.

Qu Dongyu, director-general of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, gave a speech via video link at the conference, pointing out that up to 14 percent of food produced globally went to waste between harvest and retail.

Co-organized by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, the National Development and Reform Commission, the National Food and Strategic Reserves Administration and the Shandong provincial government, the three-day event is being held both online and offline.