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Countdown to Spain´s Food Waste Act

dumpsite under clear sky

The fight against food waste is about to take a crucial step with the imminent approval of the Law on the Prevention of Food Loss and Waste in Spain.

The text has already been submitted to the Senate by the Congress of Deputies and is in its final phase of processing, with key dates that mark the path to its entry into force: the deadline for amendments and veto proposals ends on 7 February, and 26 March is the deadline for processing in the Senate. From the publication in the Official State Gazette (BOE), supermarkets and other actors in the large-scale food distribution sector will have one year to adapt to the new obligations.

An important law that has supermarkets as a key player

In Spain, 25 million kilograms of food are wasted weekly, of which more than 80% are unused products, according to data extracted from the foundations of the Law. These worrying figures were the driving force behind the legislation that sets specific objectives: reducing per capita waste at retail and consumer level by 50% by 2030, and food losses during production by 20%.

Supermarkets are key players in achieving these goals because they are located at a strategic point in the food chain, connecting producers and consumers. By managing large volumes of food, they have the capacity to generate a significant impact on reducing waste, both in the management of their own surpluses and in raising awareness among employees and customers.

For this reason, the law establishes a series of responsibilities for supermarkets. One of the most important, detailed in Article 6, indicates that those establishments in the food chain with a surface area of ​​more than 1,300 m² will be obliged to sign donation agreements with social entities, guaranteeing that food that cannot be sold, but is still fit for consumption, is destined for those who need it most.

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They should also promote the sale of products with imperfections or those close to their best-before date, and encourage sustainable practices that reduce waste at the source.

Restaurants must also play a part

Restaurants and other food outlets will also have to adapt to the changes, ensuring, as much as possible, that no food goes to waste, and that customers are able to take their uneaten food home.


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Arrests for intimidating witnesses

Alicante National Police

Three men have been arrested by National Police for threatening and abusing two young men in order to persuade them to change their testimony during a police inquiry.

The police inquiry began after a young man complained to officers that he had been beaten and intimidated by three acquaintances in order to induce him to withdraw a statement he had given to police in Benidorm on an investigation in which they were involved.

One of the attackers recorded the attack on a cell phone and threatened to use a knife to harm the victim’s buddy who was present at the time to prevent him from intervening.

Days before the incident, one of the perpetrators sent the victim many threats via a mobile messaging app, threatening to attack her if she did not change her statement. This made the victim extremely apprehensive and fearful of encountering these people on the street.

Another victim was attacked for the exact same reason


During the inquiry, authorities discovered a second complaint from another victim who had been threatened to falsify his statement before being surprised on the street and assaulted by a man who was also connected to the Benidorm investigation into the other accused.

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Once all of the information about the incident had been gathered, officers from the Alicante Northern District Police Station’s Judicial Police group conducted a series of checks, which resulted in the complete identification of the three perpetrators of the first attack, as well as the perpetrator of the second victim. All of them were men aged 20 to 22.

Officers eventually discovered three of the perpetrators, who were arrested for alleged bodily harm and obstruction of justice.

Agents are working to locate and apprehend the other suspect in the event.

Following police investigations, the inmates were hauled before the Alicante Court of First Instance for duty.

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Santa Pola Local Police arrested man for smashing 27 wing mirrors

Santa Pola Local Police Mirror Smash

Santa Pola Local Police arrested a man for reportedly smashing and striking the wing mirrors of at least 27 cars parked in the downtown area of the coastal town.

The incident occurred on Saturday 22nd March, about 5:00 a.m. A police unit was dispatched to the scene after witnesses called in a report.

Officers spotted the man along the streets specified by the neighbour who phoned police and discovered that he had injuries to his hands that could have been caused by striking objects such as the rearview mirrors of those cars.


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Marcin, the Manchester butcher who attempted to hide in Alicante

Alicante, the province with the biggest concentration of non-Spanish people (27%), is a red sign for international criminals looking to conceal their activities. One of them could have been a dismembered butcher who, if not apprehended in Manchester, would be roaming the streets of Alicante.

Marcin Majerkiewicz’s case startled the English city with its ferocity. The 42-year-old Pole was recently convicted guilty of murdering, dismembering, and dispersing his roommate’s body throughout Manchester last year.

Manchester Crown Court concluded that Majerkiewicz murdered Stuart Everett, 67, before dismembering his body into 27 pieces and depositing his remains in various areas throughout Manchester and Salford over the course of a week in an attempt to conceal his crime.

Majerkiewicz was unemployed with 60,000 euros in debt, an obsession with violent horror, and a tattoo of the slasher film character Jason Voorhees from Friday the 13th.

This gory incident almost brought Alicante into the picture, as it was discovered that the killer had been looking online for rental properties in the province to escape his troublesome life in the United Kingdom before being arrested.

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Everett, whose parents were Polish, taught English to Polish immigrants, and Majerkiewicz was among his students. In 2017, he moved into his teacher’s home, where he stayed with another man until the day of the incident.

Human remains


The relationship soured in 2024. The cause is unknown: it may have been a fight, an argument, or the dissolution of a more intimate relationship between the two. What Manchester Police do know is that on April 4th, last year, the first human remains were discovered in a nature reserve, sparking the inquiry.

A check of security cameras revealed the Pole as the primary suspect, with photos showing him carrying an 18-kilogram sack of human remains.

Stuart’s family, who do not live in Manchester, did not report him missing. This is because Majerkiewicz used Stuart’s identity for around three weeks after the murder. He sent them WhatsApp messages, birthday cards, and gifts. Stuart’s family was misled into believing he was still alive while he attempted to improve his life on the Costa Blanca.

Rebecca Macaulay-Addison, a specialist Crown prosecutor from the Crown’s Complex Case Unit, stated that “Marcin Majerkiewicz murdered Stuart Everett before making a despicable and disturbing attempt to cover his tracks by disposing of Mr. Everett’s remains.”

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“Majerkiewicz not only stole a loved one from those caring for Mr. Everett; his subsequent actions almost certainly exacerbated his pain and suffering,” he continued.

Detectives analysed security cameras and mobile phones to identify Majerkiewicz’s visits to secluded places in Salford and Manchester for the purpose of depositing human remains.

These excursions included remote regions, waterways, and rural parks. Detectives discovered Stuart’s remains or DNA at six spots after conducting extensive land and marine searches in 19 areas.

Detective Chief Superintendent Lewis Hughes, the investigation’s chief investigator, described it as a case of “exceptional complexity and magnitude, with detectives initially responding to partial human remains found deep within an isolated woodland.”

“From the beginning, we said we wouldn’t give up, and the victim and her family remained at the forefront of our minds and actions throughout the entire process,” according to the detective.

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Majerkiewicz was arrested on April 25th, 2024. Following a two-week trial at Manchester Crown Court, he was found guilty of murder and is set to be sentenced to life in prison on March 28th.


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