Food Waste: The Hidden Cost of the Food We Throw Out I ClimateScience #9

Worldwide, 30% of food is lost or wasted - that’s 1.6 BILLION tonnes of food every year! It is vital that people are aware of the impacts of food waste and what they can do to make a difference.

Check out our chapter on food waste to learn more: https://climatescience.org/advanced-food-waste/

ClimateScience is a registered charity in the UK led by over 200 young enthusiastic volunteers. Our mission is to make real, long-term climate solutions actionable.

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Worldwide, 30% of food is lost or wasted.
This averages out to 614 kcal per person,

every single day, about the same as
10 medium eggs or 21 large carrots!

But wait! What does this
have to do with climate change?

When food is lost or wasted, all of
the resources that went into making it

are wasted too.

Globally this accounts for
1.4 billion hectares of wasted land

and 250 km³ of wasted water every year.

That’s a land area larger than
Canada and India put together

and enough water to fill up
100 million Olympic sized swimming pools!

What’s more, food loss and waste
are responsible for 8-10%

of global greenhouse gas emissions.

These emissions not only come
from the production and transportation

of the wasted food, but they also come
directly from the rotting food itself

when it is broken down by microorganisms.

Despite all this waste, in 2019
nearly 1 in 10 people around the world

were exposed to severe food insecurity.
Reducing food loss and waste by just 50%

would provide enough food
to feed all of these people and then some!

Although food losses occur
at all stages of the food supply chain,

their main cause varies between
different countries.

In wealthier countries, more than 40% of
food loss and waste occur at the retail

and consumer stage, largely due to
consumer behaviour and food supply

exceeding demand.

Food losses in lower-income countries
mostly occur earlier in the supply chain,

due to poor harvesting techniques,
insufficient storage

and cooling facilities
and a lack of infrastructure

for food transport and marketing.

So what can we do to reduce
all of this food loss and waste?

Well, let’s begin at the start
of the supply chain:

we need to reduce food losses
on the farm itself.

Sub-optimal conditions, such as not enough
water and too much heat, significantly

reduce the growth potential of food crops
and 20-40% of crops globally

are lost to insect pests,
weeds, and diseases.

Global soil quality is also degrading,
making it harder for plants

to access the nutrients they need
to grow and forcing farmers

to rely on artificial fertilizers.

By improving soil quality and exploiting
natural interactions between plants,

animals, and their environment,
farmers can improve crop yields

whilst reducing waste and resource use.

Providing farmers with
effective harvesting technologies

will also be important, as food
is often lost to damage or spillage

during the harvesting process.

One of the biggest causes of food loss in
lower-income countries is storage:

if food is left somewhere that is too hot
or too damp it can easily spoil or rot.

Improving storage facilities and transport
infrastructure can therefore

significantly reduce losses: if lower
income countries had the same access

to refrigeration as richer nations,
food losses would be reduced by 25%!

To solve this problem, we need to develop
low-cost, off-grid solutions

for food preservation, such as mobile
solar-powered storage.

Food processing and more durable packaging
can also prevent food spoilage during

storage, transport, and at the consumer
stage, although we would need to consider

the sustainability of the
packaging that is used.

Even so, innovation can
only get us so far.

Retailer and consumer behaviours
will also need to change.

For example, supermarkets set very high
standards for what food should look like,

meaning that imperfect food is often
discarded even if it's perfectly edible.

Embracing these “ugly” foods at both
the retail and consumer level

will significantly reduce
how much gets thrown away.

Restaurants, retailers, and caterers
can also reduce their waste by selling

food in more appropriate portions and
by donating uneaten goods to those

who are unable to afford them.

But what can we do as individuals?

Well, we can start by planning ahead
and only buying what we need.

We can cook with leftovers and use our
freezers to keep food fresh for longer.

As well as encouraging less
wasteful practices, we also need

to be more aware of how to store food
properly and how to tell if food

is still safe beyond its expiration date.

As the world gets richer, consumer-level
food waste is likely to become

more and more of a problem.

Therefore, it is vital that people are
aware of the impacts of food waste

and what they can do to make a difference.

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Till next time!