THE FOOD WASTE PROBLEM
By: Nami Hoffman
THE FACTS
- Food waste costs the United States approximately $218 billion per year
- Food waste accounts for 21-33% of U.S. agricultural water use
- 95% of discarded food ends up in landfills, it decomposes and produces a greenhouse gas called methane
- 40% of all food produced goes uneaten in the United States
- Households are responsible for the largest portion of all food waste, approxiately 40-50%
REASONS FOR HOUSEHOLD WASTE
- Food spoilage: 2/3 of food waste at home is due to food not being used before it goes bad
- Over-preparing: 1/3 of food waste at home is because people cook or serve too much
- Date label confusion: Food is discarded prematurely because confused by different date labels
- Overbuying: Impulse and bulk purchases make people buy items that don’t fit in their plans
- Poor planning: No meal plan or shopping list, which leads to inaccurate estimates of ingredients
BENEFITS OF LESS FOOD WASTE
- Cost savings on labor through better handling of food
- Cost savings when purchasing only as much food as needed
- Less methane emissions and a lower carbon footprint
- Community benefits of donating safe food that would have otherwise been throwout
WAYS TO ELIMINATE YOUR FOOD WASTE
- Take the time to learn about food and how to tell when it is no longer safe and edible.
- Put effort into understanding the labels on their food
- Learn how to store food properly and have better food management practices
- Learn how to compost and start doing it
- Be conscious of their shopping habits and to make sure to not overbuy
- When excess food is a problem, donate what you can
- Don't shy away and continue to have conversations about food waste