Young volunteers put up posters promoting food saving in Suzhou, Jiangsu province, on Aug 12, 2020. (HUA XUEGEN / CHINA DAILY)

BEIJING - Chinese lawmakers on Tuesday began deliberating a draft law on preventing food waste to ensure food security.

The law is of great significance to promoting a healthy, rational and green lifestyle and way of consumption

The 32-article draft was submitted to the ongoing session of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress for its first reading.

The law is of great significance to promoting a healthy, rational and green lifestyle and way of consumption. It is also essential to accelerating the construction of a resource-conserving and environmentally friendly society, and to sustainable economic and social development, according to an explanation submitted to the session.

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Lawmakers elevate the effective policies and measures the country has adopted over the past years into the draft law in an effort to establish a long-term mechanism to prevent food waste, says the explanation.

The draft specifies the anti-food waste responsibilities of the government, catering service providers and individuals.

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It also requires the establishment of a mechanism to combat food waste, in which various parts of society are involved, including industry associations, the education sector and the news media.