Food wastage

 

For many people in the world, food waste has become a habit: buying more food than we need at markets, letting fruits and vegetables spoil at home or taking larger portions than we can eat.

These habits put extra strain on our natural resources and damage our environment. When we waste food, we waste the labour, effort, investment and precious resources (like water, seeds, feed, etc.) that go into producing it, not to mention the resources that go into transporting and processing it. In short, wasting food increases greenhouse gas emissions and contributes to climate change.

It’s a big problem. In fact, worldwide, tonnes of edible food are lost or wasted every day. Between harvest and retail alone, around 14 percent of all food produced globally is lost. Huge quantities of food are also wasted in retail or at the consumer level.

The part of food that is lost from harvest up to, but not including, the retail level is called food loss. The part wasted at the consumer or retail level is referred to as food waste. We make this distinction to address the root causes of this problem, a problem that everyone from farmers and producers to customers and shop-owners can help end.

Food waste refers to the decrease in the quantity or quality of food resulting from decisions and actions by retailers, food service providers and consumers. Food is wasted in many ways:

Fresh produce that deviates from what is considered optimal, for example in terms of shape, size and color, is often removed from the supply chain during sorting operations.

Foods that are close to, at or beyond the “best-before” date are often discarded by retailers and consumers.

Large quantities of wholesome edible food are often unused or left over and discarded from household kitchens and eating establishments.

Everyone has a part to play in reducing food loss and waste. FAO accordingly works with a broad spectrum of stakeholders and partners to tackle the problem. At the macro level, FAO works in collaboration with governments and other international bodies to promote awareness and advocacy on the issues and to develop policies to reduce FLW. At the meso-level, FAO’s activities facilitate coordination among food supply chain actors - farmers, handlers, processors and traders, in collaboration with the public and private sectors and civil society. At the micro level, FAO focuses on consumers and changing their individual attitudes, behaviours, consumption and shopping habits related to food.