Food waste occurs throughout the production process, from the farm to distribution to retailers to the consumer.
Losses from mould, pests, or insufficient climate control are among the causes, as are losses from cooking and intentional food waste.
This waste is classified differently depending on where it occurs: Food “loss” occurs before the food reaches the consumer as a result of problems during the manufacturing, storage, processing, and distribution stages.
Meanwhile, food “waste” is food that is fit for consumption but is discarded consciously during the retail or consumption phases.
What are the disadvantages of food waste?
Many people do not understand how to plan meals for shopping lists in order to create a waste-free shopping list to its full potential.
Too busy to make a waste-free shopping list.
Composting and many other recycling methods take time and space, and some people are unable to do them or do not fully understand how to begin and sustain them over time.
Improved energy and resource management, as well as pollution prevention in the food growing, manufacturing, transporting, and selling processes.
Recommended: Benefits of Composting and Recycling
What are the advantages of food waste?
The use of sustainable food practises aids in the preservation of the world’s food supplies.
It teaches us better food management techniques as well as how to organise and maximise all of the world’s food.
You save money by reducing food waste and organising your shopping. Labor costs can be reduced by handling, preparing, and storing food more efficiently.
Saving money by purchasing only what is needed and avoiding additional disposal costs. Reduced landfill methane emissions and a lower carbon footprint.
Improved energy and resource management, as well as pollution prevention in the food growing, manufacturing, transporting, and selling processes.
The community benefits from donated, untouched, and safe food that would otherwise be discarded.
Recommended: How To Calculate Food Wastage In Restaurants
What are the benefits of reducing food waste?
Economic advantages: When you are proactive about reducing food waste each week, you save money in the long run. Purchasing less food results in far less waste, but it can also help you save a lot of time.
Environmental advantages: As soon as you begin wasting fewer resources, particularly food, you are reducing your carbon footprint.
Food composting is an excellent way to reduce the amount of wasted food we send to landfills or combustion sites.
Social benefits: Unfortunately, food loss is becoming more common in low-income countries, particularly in farming communities during peak harvest.
Donating unsold food to communities that lack food security can have a significant social impact.
What are the solutions to food waste?
Food waste prevention and education campaigns, as well as municipal composting programmes, can be incorporated by state and local governments.
Farmers who donate excess produce to local food banks may be eligible for tax breaks from governments. Proposed legislation is currently in effect in California, Arizona, and Colorado.
Restaurants, grocery stores, and institutional food services can assess their food waste and implement best practises.
Supermarkets selling damaged or nearly expired produce at a discount, or offering “half-off” promotions instead of “buy-one-get-one-free” promotions, are two examples.
Restaurants can serve smaller portions and donate unsold ingredients and cooked food to charities.
To reduce food waste in hotel, schools, and restaurants, these places such as schools may experiment with concepts such as salad bars or build-your-own burritos that allow children to create their own meals.
Farms can assess food losses during processing, distribution, and storage and implement best practises as a result.
Farmers markets may sell “ugly” produce, which consists of discarded, misshapen fruits and vegetables that do not meet the usual aesthetic standards.
Farms can sell fresh but unmarketable produce to food banks at a reduced price.
Conclusion
Most people are unaware of how much food they waste every day, from uneaten leftovers to spoiled produce to fruit and vegetable parts that could be eaten or repurposed.
In the United States, one-third of all food goes uneaten. According to the EPA, approximately 81 percent of wasted food from households ended up in landfills or combustion facilities in 2018.
Preventing food waste is one of the simplest and most powerful actions you can take to save money and reduce your carbon footprint by lowering GHG emissions and conserving natural resources.
Reference
- The impact of food preservation on food waste
- Benefits and disadvantages of methods for quantifying household food waste
