The High Cost of Food Waste

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On 11th， September， Food and Agriculture Organization and Environmental Agency released a report named “Track of Wasting Food： Its Impact on Natural Resources”， which analyzed food waste in the world in the perspective of environment for the first time. The report pointed out that the water that had been used for producing uneaten food in the whole world every year was equal to three times of the annual flow of Volga River. Furthermore， the emission of the greenhouse gases caused by the food production was as much as 3.3 billion tons. On top of this， the annual economic loss caused by food waste not including fishes and marine products was up to 750 billion dollars. The concern about resource and environment and civil health risks had become the vast potential risk of the society and economic development due to food waste.

Waste of Food―a Global Problem

In UK， a new investigation from Retail Active （a consultative company） showed： fruits， salad and vegetables in the weekly shopping basket were wasted the most， with bananas on top of the list of foods， followed by fresh milk.

According to the report by “The Telegraph”， a family of four throw away food of 15.70 pounds monthly on average， while， the group beyond the age of 57 years seem more frugal with 3.36 pounds of foods to throw away monthly on average.

The figure of food waste produced by US was surprising. In 2008， the number of food residue of US took up approximately 12.7% of the whole number of urban MSW， only less than 3% of which （32 million tons） was recycled to be used. According to Environmental Protection Agency， the rest （nearly 31 million tons） was thrown into refuse landfill or incinerators.

Food waste is not only the problem of US or UK but a global issue.

Generally， in developing countries， food waste is more likely in the process of agricultural production， while， in the countries with middle or high incomes， the figure of food waste in retail and consumption was usually higher， with 31% to 39% of the amount and the figure of the regions with low-income was 4% to 16%.

Double Losses of Food Waste

The project of Waste and Resource Movement revealed that the British people annually wasted food of 6.7 million tons approximately with the equivalent of one third of the food amount of British families. The cost of these wastes was about 16 billion dollars and there were nearly 800- dollars food wasted accounting by an average family.

Food waste is not only an economic loss but also a pressure on the environment.

According to experts， the emission of carbon dioxide in the air would reduce by 15 million tons if food waste can be avoided， which equaled to one fifth of cars decreased from the streets in Britain.

The director of Waste and Resource Movement project Leeds Goodwen said： “Though people buy lots of vegetables and fruits for the sake of good health， it is not a good thing when they are thrown away.”

The global food system affects the world’s ecological environment

The global food system has a great impact on the environment and food produced is much more than consumed， which only increases the pressure on the environment. It leads to the degeneration of more than 20% of the lands， 30% forests and 10% grasslands； 90% of fresh water resource is consumed， including 70% for agricultural irrigation. Moreover， agriculture and the change of the function of land such as disafforestation causes more than 30% of the emission of greenhouse gases； overfishing and mismanagement result in the decrease of fishes and approximately 30% of the marine fish resource has been overdeveloped. Probably what you have discarded is just food， but it can lead to the big loss of the precious resources on earth which will disappear quickly.

According to the report， cereal waste in Asia is a significant problem， which can greatly impact the carbon emission and the use of water and lands. In addition， the cereal production with its high emission of methane and vast waste is very worrying. Compared with food， meat waste is relatively less but its effect on the environment is very significant as in land occupancy and carbon footprint， especially in the high-income countries and Latin America， whose wastes take up 80% of the whole meat waste. The waste caused by high-income countries will reach 67% if Latin America is excluded.

Say No to Food Waste to Reduce Unnecessary Loss

As to how to reduce food loss and waste in every procedure of food producing， the report puts forward three points： First， we should consider reducing food waste to avoid producing unnecessary food with natural resources； Second， the secondary market should be sought or excessive food be donated to feed poor people in the society to avoid the waste of excessive food. Last， the cyclic utilization method like making fertilizer and incineration should be tried to recycle part of energy and nutrient from food waste in case recycling is not possible.

On March 17， 2013， pupils from Wenwan School in Huaqian Community， Licheng District， Shandong Province， walk to the street with “clean plates” in their hands.

Waste of Food―a Global Problem

In UK， a new investigation from Retail Active （a consultative company） showed： fruits， salad and vegetables in the weekly shopping basket were wasted the most， with bananas on top of the list of foods， followed by fresh milk.

According to the report by “The Telegraph”， a family of four throw away food of 15.70 pounds monthly on average， while， the group beyond the age of 57 years seem more frugal with 3.36 pounds of foods to throw away monthly on average.

The figure of food waste produced by US was surprising. In 2008， the number of food residue of US took up approximately 12.7% of the whole number of urban MSW， only less than 3% of which （32 million tons） was recycled to be used. According to Environmental Protection Agency， the rest （nearly 31 million tons） was thrown into refuse landfill or incinerators.

Food waste is not only the problem of US or UK but a global issue.

Generally， in developing countries， food waste is more likely in the process of agricultural production， while， in the countries with middle or high incomes， the figure of food waste in retail and consumption was usually higher， with 31% to 39% of the amount and the figure of the regions with low-income was 4% to 16%.

Double Losses of Food Waste

The project of Waste and Resource Movement revealed that the British people annually wasted food of 6.7 million tons approximately with the equivalent of one third of the food amount of British families. The cost of these wastes was about 16 billion dollars and there were nearly 800- dollars food wasted accounting by an average family.

Food waste is not only an economic loss but also a pressure on the environment.

According to experts， the emission of carbon dioxide in the air would reduce by 15 million tons if food waste can be avoided， which equaled to one fifth of cars decreased from the streets in Britain.

The director of Waste and Resource Movement project Leeds Goodwen said： “Though people buy lots of vegetables and fruits for the sake of good health， it is not a good thing when they are thrown away.”

The Global Food System Affects the World’s Ecological Environment

The global food system has a great impact on the environment and food produced is much more than consumed， which only increases the pressure on the environment. It leads to the degeneration of more than 20% of the lands， 30% forests and 10% grasslands； 90% of fresh water resource is consumed， including 70% for agricultural irrigation. Moreover， agriculture and the change of the function of land such as disafforestation causes more than 30% of the emission of greenhouse gases； overfishing and mismanagement result in the decrease of fishes and approximately 30% of the marine fish resource has been overdeveloped. Probably what you have discarded is just food， but it can lead to the big loss of the precious resources on earth which will disappear quickly.

According to the report， cereal waste in Asia is a significant problem， which can greatly impact the carbon emission and the use of water and lands. In addition， the cereal production with its high emission of methane and vast waste is very worrying. Compared with food， meat waste is relatively less but its effect on the environment is very significant as in land occupancy and carbon footprint， especially in the high-income countries and Latin America， whose wastes take up 80% of the whole meat waste. The waste caused by high-income countries will reach 67% if Latin America is excluded.

Say No to Food Waste to Reduce Unnecessary Loss

As to how to reduce food loss and waste in every procedure of food producing， the report puts forward three points： First， we should consider reducing food waste to avoid producing unnecessary food with natural resources； Second， the secondary market should be sought or excessive food be donated to feed poor people in the society to avoid the waste of excessive food. Last， the cyclic utilization method like making fertilizer and incineration should be tried to recycle part of energy and nutrient from food waste in case recycling is not possible.