A new report from the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), titled ‘Driven To Waste’ has concluded that the current global food waste crisis is worse than previously predicted, finding over a billion tonnes of food is wasted every year before it even reaches commercial circulation.
According to the study, 1.2bn tonnes of edible food is binned at farms every year – the equivalent weight of 10m blue whales, and significantly more than the 931m tonnes lost in the retail, household and food service sector combined.
This amount is significantly higher than previously indicated, with the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation estimating a total of 1.3bn tonnes of food is wasted every year, in comparison to WWF’s estimated total of 2.5bn tonnes.
The sizable loss is due in part to a lack of infrastructure, as well as consumer demands for fruit and veg to adhere to certain shapes and sizes, with ‘wonky’ items discarded. The report calls for a holistic change in the food supply chain, calling on consumers, farmers and governments alike to step up to the plate.
“Interventions targeted at the environmental and biological drivers of food ‘loss’ are unlikely to succeed until they are supported by changes to the human elements of the supply chain,” the report reads.
The research was commissioned by WWF-UK and funded through WWF-UK’s partnership with supermarket chain Tesco. It follows on from the UK’s National Food Strategy report published last week, which identified farm food waste as contributing between six and seven percent of the country’s overall greenhouse gas emissions.
Despite this significant figure, few economies have set their sights on reducing food waste – with the report showing fewer than 6% of countries who have committed to the Paris Agreement have included it in their decarbonisation plans – something the report calls to be addressed.
“Food waste on farms must take a higher position on policy agendas in the form of legally binding food waste reduction targets,” it states.
“Farm-stage interventions can no longer be focused on technology alone. Effective interventions to reduce farm-stage food waste must involve multiple elements rather than single solutions, and must address the socio-economic and market factors that shape the agricultural system.”
Sources:
https://waste-management-world.com/a/more-food-is-wasted-on-farms-than-in-retail