PPT-25
Green Earth Movement
An E-Newsletter for the cause of Environment, Peace, Harmony and Justice
Remember - “you and I can decide the future”
SIN OF
FOOD
WASTE
Food waste or food loss is food that is
discarded or cannot be used. The causes of
food waste or loss are numerous, and
occur at the stages of production,
processing, retailing and consumption.
As of 2013, half of all food is wasted worldwide,
according to the British Institute of Mechanical
Engineers (IME). In
low-income countries,
most loss occurs during
production, while in
developed countries
much food – about
100 kilograms (220 lb)
per person per year – is
wasted at the consumption stage.
1] FOOD WASTE AT THE PRODUCTION LEVEL
Research into the food industry of
the United States, whose food supply
is the most diverse and abundant of
any country in the world, found food
waste occurring at the beginning of
food production. From planting, crops
can be subjected to pest infestations
and severe weather and other natural factors. The use
of machinery in harvesting can cause waste, as harvesters may be
unable to discern between ripe and immature crops, or collect
only part of a crop. Economic factors, such as regulations and
standards for quality and appearance, also cause food waste;
farmers often harvest selectively, preferring to leave crops not to
standard in the field (where they can be used as fertilizer or animal
feed), since they would otherwise be discarded later.
2. FOOD WASTE AT THE POST HARVEST STAGE
Food waste continues in the post harvest stage, but
the amounts of post harvest loss involved are
relatively unknown and difficult to estimate.
Regardless, the variety of
factors that contribute to
food waste, both
biological/environmental and
socio-economical would limit
the usefulness and reliability
of general figures. In storage, considerable
quantitative losses can be attributed to pests and
micro-organisms.
3] FOOD WASTE AT THE RETAILS SALE LEVEL
Supermarkets, convenience
stores, and general stores waste
huge quantities of food as a
result of consumer demand
for freshness and the fear of
empty shelves before closing.
In the U.S., there are about 36,569 supermarkets with annual
sales over $2 million each and 148,126 convenience stores,
which must provide fresh and plentiful food for customers all
day, every day. Consequently, food waste has become an
accepted byproduct of providing food for American
consumers. According to a study, food retailers discard about
2.7 million tons (5.4 billion pounds) of food waste per year in
the struggle to be competitive.
4] FOOD LOSS AT THE CONSUMER LEVEL
Food losses in developed countries are as high as in
developing countries, but in developing countries more than
40% of the food losses occur at post-harvest and processing
levels, while in industrialized countries, more than 40% of the
food losses occur at retail and
consumer levels. Food
waste at consumer level in
industrialized countries
222 million tons almost
equivalent to the total food
production in sub Saharan
Africa (230 million)
Food wastage: Key facts and figures
• The global volume of food wastage is estimated at 1.6 billion
tonnes of "primary product equivalents." Total food wastage
for the edible part of this amounts to 1.3 billion tonnes.
• Food wastage's carbon footprint is estimated at 3.3 billion
tonnes of CO2 equivalent of GHG (Green House Gas) released
into the atmosphere per year.
•The total volume of water used each year to produce food
that is lost or wasted (250km3) is equivalent to the annual
flow of Russia's Volga River, or three times the volume of Lake
Geneva.
• Similarly, 1.4 billion hectares
of land - 28 percent of the
world's agricultural area - is
used annually to produce food
that is lost or wasted.
• A low percentage of all food wastage is composted: much of
it ends up in landfills, and represents a large part of municipal
solid waste. Methane emissions from landfills represents one
of the largest sources of GHG emissions from the waste
sector.
What can we do to avoid/reduce/manage food
waste in India?
Since India has the second
largest population in the
world its accountability for
food waste in India is
enormous either in the
form of avoidable or
unavoidable waste. We alone are responsible that
tons of food is being wasted every day and lot of
people could have been served with that.
Food waste occurs at various
sectors namely households,
commercials, industries, etc.
Commercials include
restaurants, delis, bakery, fruit
shops, etc. Food waste at the
industrial sector is the waste done
at the production, processing,
storage, packing, and distribution sectors. Whatever
sector it has been certainly avoiding food waste is a
foremost solution. Yet apart from this, food waste
management is essential to reduce carbon footprint. Let
me go ahead with some simple tips to avoid food
waste in the households and commercial/industrial
sectors as well.
TIPS TO AVOID FOOD WASTE IN THE HOUSEHOLDS
1. Learn to shop and cook smartly, and save food to avoid
waste.
2. Do careful planning before bringing food products to your
pantry/kitchen
3. To be more sensible whilst organizing any party or social
gathering at your households
4. Let your children be aware of the importance of food and
the impact of food waste on environment.
5. Before throwing away the uneaten food left at your
household parties, think for a moment and go ahead
to donate to charities through NGOs in your area. You
would have not only preserved environment but also
brought in smiles in the unfortunate faces.
6. Create your own compost at
your premises to make fertilizers
for your gardens if the food is
left uneaten or rotten or left
over at your kitchen. You are
reducing the food waste and setting an example for
recycling as well.
TIPS TO AVOID FOODWASTE IN THE
COMMERCIAL/INDUSTRIAL/OTHER SECTORS
1. Following essential food safety techniques helps in not only
avoiding food waste but in cost efficiency too.
2. Consuming local produce will not need much
transportation and hence lasts longer.
3. Setting up of food waste audit certainly guides you to
realize how much and why food has been wasted.
4. Maintaining a weekly record of tracking the
quantities of served food and sales will enhance your
business and helps in to
prevent wastage of food.
5. Trained staff and correct
techniques in food handling
and safety does reduce
Food Waste.
6. Keeping skins on vegetables and fruits will avoid
food waste
7. Maintaining correct temperature and good storage
facilities for perishables namely dairy products and
meat will work out in no food waste campaigning.
8. Regular checking of temperatures, seals on fridges and freezers
and rotation of stock to keep them fresh will bring down
spoilage.
9. Offering flexible serving sizes and assessing portion sizes in
favor of the customers would lead to prevent food waste.
10. Providing appropriate doggy bags
on customer's request in the
restaurants/food malls will apparently
reduce food waste.
11. Again, donating the leftover
quality food at the eateries/restaurants
to charity homes/orphanages will help in reducing the global
warming instead of throwing them to landfills.
12. To repeat, recycling the food waste or compost it to produce
organic fertilizers would be the best choice if food waste is
unavoidable.
FOOD WASTE AND ENVIRONMENT
The waste of a staggering 1.3 billion tonnes of food
per year is not only causing major economic losses
but also wreaking significant harm on the natural
resources that humanity relies upon to feed itself,
says a new FAO report.
Food Wastage Footprint: Impacts on Natural
Resources is the first study to analyze the
impacts of global food wastage from an
environmental perspective, looking specifically
at its consequences for the climate, water and
land use, and biodiversity.
Among its key findings: Each year, food that is
produced but not
eaten guzzles up
a volume of water
equivalent to the
annual flow of
Russia's Volga
River and is
responsible for
adding 3.3 billion tonnes of greenhouse gases to
the planet's atmosphere.
Producing, distributing, storing and cooking food uses
energy, fuel and water. Each of these emits
greenhouse gases contributing to climate change.
Think of a pack of cheese. The resources that go into
raising the cows, processing the milk, transporting the
cheese, refrigeration, the
fuel we use to drive to
the shop to buy it – all
this to put it in the bin at
the end of the week. In
fact in the UK we throw
away the equivalent of
more than three million slices of cheese a day!
If we stopped throwing this good food
away it would save the equivalent of at
least 17 million tonnes of carbon dioxide,
the same as taking 1 in every 5 cars off our
roads.
“Almost 1.2 billion people are
going hungry in the world; a
third of those are in Africa and
sadly a lot of those are actually
farmers themselves.” Though
other estimates differ, some
putting the number at a more
conservative range of 870 – 900 million people, still the
general consensus is that a substantial part of the global
population is suffering from hunger and a
disproportionate part of this is in the developing world –
to which Africa belongs. Ironically, an estimated 1.5
billion people are either overweight, obese or suffer from
over-nutrition globally.
Despite this humbling fact, i.e. while a large number of people
go without food daily, one-third of food produced globally for
human consumption is lost or wasted; and the quantity of
food thrown away in developed countries is almost equivalent
to the total amount produced by sub-Saharan Africa. This
wastage of about 1.3 trillion tonnes of food is valued at nearly
one trillion US dollars.
More so, according to
FAO, just a quarter of the
food being currently lost
or wasted is enough to feed
up to 900 million (which is
the number of those going
hungry according to some
estimates).
In a nutshell, to meet the zero-hunger initiative, all
including the consumers, food and hospitality
industry, and the government have to take part in
the global campaign against food waste launched
by the UNEP/UNFAO. It is prudent that we
collectively require a transition in the pattern we
produce and procure food but not at the cost of
depleting our natural resources. Let us involve in
the campaign actively by eating food, avoiding
waste, reducing food-print and hence saving
environment to bring forth a sustainable
wonderful universe.
TO CONCLUDE WHAT POPE FRANCIS SAYS ABOUT
FOOD WASTE
Pope Francis denounces what he called
a "culture of waste" in an increasingly
consumerist world and said throwing
away good food was like stealing from
poor people. "Our grandparents used to make a point
of not throwing away leftover food. Consumerism has
made us accustomed to wasting food daily and we are
unable to see its real value," Francis said at his weekly
audience in St. Peter's Square. "Throwing away food
is like stealing from the table of those who are poor
and hungry," he said.
This educational PowerPoint Presentation (editable) is prepared by
GEM Team (courtesy: internet).
For other similar GEM PowerPoint Presentations on various
environmental issues see next slide.
These PPTs may be downloaded from our website
www.stfrancisxavierpanvel.in
Or visit GEM FACEBOOK
http://www.facebook.com/gemenewsletter
The GEM PPTs can be creatively used for various groups including
Sunday Mass Congregation. In fact, protecting God’s creation is part of
our spiritual life, Eco Spirituality.
Zero Garbage
Solar Energy
Junk Food
Twenty Tips To Save Nature
Plastic – a boon or bane?
Green Passion
Soft drink – A Health Hazard
Waste to energy
Rain Water Harvesting
Eco-friendly Religions
Happy Green Diwali
Climate Change
The future of Biodiversity
Genetically Modified Foods
Waste Water Treatment
Give thanks, Give Life (Body,
Organ, Tissue Donation)
Organic Farming
Waste to cooking gas
Reduce, Reuse. Recycle
Protect Mangroves
Say NO to Bottled water
Save Lakes and Ponds
Forests are green lungs
Coal Mining and Ecology
Sin of Food Waste
Climate change and Poverty
Stop Water Pollution
Carbon Footprints
Parks and Open Spaces
Rising Sea Levels
For Free Weekly GEM E-Newsletters visit –
www.stfrancisxavierpanvel.in – every
Friday. Go to GEM section,
click GEM E-NEWSLETTERS