Zero Waste Malaysia sheds light on food wastage during festive season

 Zero Waste Malaysia has released a film as part of its campaign that spotlights the reality of food wastage during the festive season. The film was produced in collaboration with Dentsu Creative Malaysia and features pests and rodents feasting on the scraps and remains of a Christmas spread that goes to waste. It has been reported an average of 17,000 tonnes of food waste is produced in Malaysia every single day, with this number increasing by 15% to 20% during festive seasons. This campaign is part of their mission to build a waste-free and sustainable future. 

Tasha Sabapathy, marketing communications executive at Zero Waste Malaysia, said that food waste is prevalent in Malaysia as not everyone sees the direct impact of food waste, especially during festive seasons. “Food going in the bin doesn’t go away peacefully but emits harmful gases which contribute to pollution. We were excited to hear Dentsu’s idea in raising awareness this Christmas season in a creative storytelling manner,” she added.

The film’s backdrop is a miniature living space that plays with scale to contrast festive joy with the massive problem of food waste. “It’s a stark contrast to the usual yuletide message we see and hear. As it is Zero Waste Malaysia’s very first brand campaign endeavour, we deliberately wanted the film to trigger a reaction, create conversation and to ensure that their effort do not go unnoticed," said Alicia Hew, creative director of dentsu Creative Malaysia.

According to Jin Soon, a senior copywriter, the production team remained mindful of reducing waste during the making of the film as well, by repurposing personal belongings that could be used for the film and using recycled objects and materials. The campaign extends beyond the film to the company’s social pages that provide more information on how we can put zero waste living into practice during the holidays. Denstu Creative was officially formed in June 2022, with the aim of supercharging the agency’s creative product and reinvigorating its talent. “Our ideas, solutions, products and innovation will be designed for impact – be it to create culture, change society or invent the future - and that is how we will measure creative success moving forward," added Andrew Loh, dentsu Creative's group chief creative officer in Malaysia.

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