Every year, we waste or lose 1.3 billion metric tons of food – one-third of the world’s annual food production. The sheer scale of the number makes it almost impossible to grasp, no matter how one approaches it. Try to imagine 143,000 Eiffel Towers stacked one on top of another, or a pile of 10 trillion bananas.
Read more at http://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/on-the-massive-costs-of-food-wastage-and-loss-by-jose-graziano-da-silva-and-achim-steiner#BFim9hPSMmUpECuI.99
Every year, we waste or lose 1.3 billion metric tons of food – one-third of the world’s annual food production. The sheer scale of the number makes it almost impossible to grasp, no matter how one approaches it. Try to imagine 143,000 Eiffel Towers stacked one on top of another, or a pile of 10 trillion bananas.Read more at http://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/on-the-massive-costs-of-food-wastage-and-loss-by-jose-graziano-da-silva-and-achim-steiner#BFim9hPSMmUpECuI.99
Farms can waste up to 40% in processing. (I read an article yesterday about how much of the Michigan apple crop this year will rot). The UN wants to do something about food waste. But what can it do?
Waste Not, Want Not by José Graziano da Silva and Achim Steiner - Project Syndicate
I think the biggest thing that has to be done is more regulation of portion sizes in the super markets and systems to take the waste and develop a system that allows food that is going to be thrown to be given to those who cannot afford it.
ReplyDelete"Some supermarkets have already begun relaxing standards on fruit appearance, selling “misshapen” items at reduced prices and helping to raise awareness that ugly does not mean bad." I found this quote interesting because I never at once stopped to think why most products look so good. So they do get rid of the misshaped stuff? That's some weird stuff. Guess I am not surprised a lot of food is wasted at the production stage. Under normal circumstances price increases would have helped but high prices will not work in this staggering economy. Better storage and education about issues of food waste are the best solutions we have at the moment.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Gift. However, as customers we also need to lower our expectations of perfect produce appearance. This will not only help in supermarkets destroying misshapen products but it will also reduce producer's incentive in making them look so perfect in all sorts of artificial ways
Delete"For starters, food loss and wastage needs to be seen as a cross-cutting policy issue, rather than a lifestyle choice to be left in the hands of individual consumers and their consciences. The world needs to wake up to the need for policies that address all stages of the food chain, from production to consumption." Couldn't word it any better.
ReplyDeleteReminds me of redistributing resources from less efficient to more efficient users.
ReplyDelete...Which would increase efficiency and equity all at once. I hope the world sees that tackling this issue together head on is a rare case where it's possible that everybody comes out of it as winners and nobody loses. I would definitely support regulation on this matter!
ReplyDeleteI agree 100% with Colin "more regulation of portion sizes" I think that would be a great place to start making changes in regards to food waste.
ReplyDeletejust extremely hard to believe that we waste so much food.
ReplyDeleteeducation. awareness. regulation. reduce consumption. although, the latter seems the hardest of the four to do.
ReplyDelete