Supporting the circular economy: ENABLER project

CFA has provided a letter of support for ENABLER, a new research consortium led by the universities of Cambridge, Loughborough and Newcastle, applying for funding under the EPSRC Network Plus Reimagining Circularity programme.

ENABLER’s mission is to create a circular data ecosystem that enables trackable, comparable and actionable insights for circular practices – addressing the fragmented and inconsistent data landscape that currently limits progress toward a circular economy. The project brings together academia, industry and policy communities to co-create robust data, metrics and frameworks, with artificial intelligence at its core.

CFA’s support reflects the alignment between ENABLER’s objectives and CFA members’ sustainability commitments – particularly around food waste reduction, data interoperability and evidence-based decision-making across the supply chain. No financial contribution is required; CFA’s involvement will comprise in-kind support including staff time for events and sharing of knowledge.

Find out more about this research consortium HERE.

CFA and IFST: Special Interest Group involvement

CFA continues to support the work of the Institute of Food Science and Technology (IFST) through its Special Interest Groups (SIGs).

Karin Goodburn MBE Hon FIFST is a member of the Food Safety SIG and the Consultations Triage Group. The Food Safety SIG engages on hot topics, contributes to relevant publications and organises webinars and events.

Dr Rachel Hackett FIFST is a member of the newly formed Food Sustainability SIG, established to translate issues and share developments relating to sustainability across the food sector.

CFA joins UK Packaging Pact as founding signatory

CFA has signed up as a founding signatory to the UK Packaging Pact, joining 55 organisations ahead of the Pact’s launch in April 2026.

The UK Packaging Pact is the successor to the UK Plastics Pact – a world-first initiative that has since inspired a global network of Pacts operating across every continent. Building on seven years of collaboration and measurable impact, the new voluntary agreement extends the focus beyond plastics to drive system-wide change across all packaging materials, with four goals covering optimising packaging, scaling reuse and refill, unblocking barriers to circularity, and harmonising data. The ambition is to transform the UK packaging sector by 2035.

CFA’s founding signatory status builds on its existing commitments as a UK Food Waste Reduction Roadmap Early Adopter and its Chilled Sector Sustainability Aims – and on its previous membership of the UK Plastics Pact.