“Food loss and waste is a major challenge of our time,” said FAO Director-General QU Dongyu, calling for “stronger partnerships, more public and private investments in smallholder farmer training, technology, and innovation” to combat food loss and waste because “our planet is a small boat in the universe.”
The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations defines food loss and waste as a decline in the amount or quality of food along the food chain.
Food loss happens during production, processing, and delivery. According to FAO’s State of Food and Agriculture (2019) report, approximately 14% of the world’s food (worth $400 billion per year) is lost after harvesting and before reaching the stores.
Food waste occurs during consumption and retail food service sales. UNEP’s Food Waste Index Report shows that an additional 17% of our food is wasted in retail and by consumers, particularly in households. Global food waste totaled 931 million tons across three sectors. The largest contributing sector is households, accounting for 61% of food waste. Food waste from food service accounts for 26% of total food waste, whereas retail accounts for 13% of total food waste.
There are two types of food waste to consider: edible and inedible food waste. Edible food waste is the disposal of food appropriate for human use before or after its expiration date, either owing to deterioration or bad buying or eating habits on the part of the retailers or consumer.
It is crucial that we address food loss and waste from farm to fork as the impact goes beyond the immediate value of the unfinished food on our plate. The actual cost of food loss and waste extends to the resources that were deployed in producing the food and getting it to our plates. These resources include land, water, fertilizers, farmer’s time, transportation, storage, energy, etc. The way we grow, distribute and consume food today contributes to 30% of the global greenhouse gas emissions when all embedded resources are considered.
Food lost and wasted each year could feed 1.26 billion hungry people. We cannot afford to waste any food when over 900 million people are hungry. This is especially critical in Sub-Saharan Africa, where the population is expected to double by 2050 and where more than one-third of the world’s undernourished (282 million) dwell .
When people go food shopping they usually tend to ignore fruits and vegetables that are bruised or oddly-shaped; however, these fruits and vegetables taste the same as fruits and vegetables that meet arbitrary cosmetic standards. Choosing these ‘wonky’ fruits and vegetables that are often thrown away will lead to less food waste. More importantly, these ‘wonky’ fruits should not be sold or bought any cheaper than others. Wasting edible food is purposely undervaluing farmers’ labour and demonstrates a lack of concern for the world’s millions of starving people on the planet.
Reducing Food loss and waste benefits society as a whole by improving food security and nutrition (SDG 2), contributing to gender equality (SDG 5), lowering greenhouse gas emissions (SDG 13), relieving pressure on water (SDG 14) and land (SDG 15) resources, and potentially increasing productivity and economic growth (SDG 8). Food loss and waste reduction must be achieved in tandem with meeting the nutritional demand of an ever-growing population, improving soil health and reducing the environmental impact of food production .
Advantages of Less Food loss and Waste
- Labour savings from more efficient handling, preparation, and storage of food to be used.
- Cost savings by purchasing only what is needed and avoiding excessive disposal costs.
- Lower carbon footprint and reduced methane emissions from landfills.
- Improved energy and resource management, reducing pollutants associated with food production, manufacture, transportation, and sale.
- Greater availability and distribution of food.
Reviewed by Dr Ifeyinwa Kanu