Food loss and waste are heavily dependent on the specific conditions and local situation in a. Losses, inefficiencies and waste in the global food system. Food losses refer to edible food mass decrease throughout the human food chain. Installment 2 of creating a sustainable food future. The study assesses the state of packaging and packaging technologies in developing countries, with the challenge of global food losses and the. This statistic displays the per capita annual food loss and waste worldwide as of 2017, broken down by stage and region. Food losses and waste flw represent one of the most critical social, economic and ecological. Almost 35% of the food that is produced universally is thrown away andor wasted, resulting to an immense waste stream 1. The cop is part of a worldwide effort to mobilise stakeholders and help reduce food losses and waste. Food losses and food waste are quickly becoming a top global issue, because whiles there are millions of families with children starving, others are living in abundance, with many others carelessly throwing food away. The studies quantified the volumes of food losses and food waste arising globally each year. Highlights losses of food supply and related resources were studied at a global scale.
Food waste or food loss is food that is wasted, lost or uneaten. Reducing food loss and waste world resources report. Food losses refer to a decrease in food quantity or quality in the early stages of the. This database makes it easier for governments and companies embargoed until september 20, 2017 at 00. Setting timebound targets inspires action by raising awareness, focusing attention, and mobilizing resources. The cop website also provides a dynamic platform that facilitates the sharing and coordination of information. At the same time, fao reported that approximately 1.
Food losses and food waste flw have become a global concern in recent years and emerge as a priority in the global and national political agenda e. Global food losses and food waste this publication is based on studies carried out from august 2010 to january 2011 by the swedish institute for food and biotechnology sik on request from the food and agriculture organization of the united nations fao. The food loss and waste protocol is a global standard for the measurement of food loss and waste. Gustavsson and others published global food losses and food waste extent, causes and prevention find, read and cite all the research you need on researchgate. Around half of the losses could be prevented with a more efficient supply chain. Pdf global food losses and food waste researchgate.
Accurate estimations of the magnitude of losses and waste are lacking, particularly in developing countries. Food losses and food waste in china a first estimate reducing food losses and food waste is attracting growing public attention at the international, regional, and national levels, and is widely acknowledged to contribute to abating interlinked sustainability challenges. Global food losses and food waste european environment. Around 14 of the produced food in terms of kcal is lost in the food supply chain. Many of us have wasted food in one way or the other, but the real food losses.
Reducing the levels of loss and waste will have a large impact on food security, nutrition. Sonesson sik explains the findings of the study on global food losses. Studies commissioned by fao estimated yearly global food loss and waste by quantity at roughly 30 percent of cereals, 4050 percent of root crops, fruits and vegetables, 20 percent of oilseeds, meat and dairy products, and 35 percent of fish. The amount of food lost or wasted every year is equivalent to more than half of the worlds annual cereals crop 2. Across global food systems, food loss and waste flw is a widespread issue, posing a challenge to food security, food safety, the economy, and environmental sustainability. One billion extra people could be fed if food crop losses.
As much of the postharvest loss data for developing countries was collected over 30 years ago, current global losses cannot be quantified. By 2030, halve per capita global food waste at the retail and consumer levels and reduce food losses along production and supply chains, including postharvest losses indicator 12. Although many studies have established that reducing food losses and waste may play a substantial role in achieving food security and climate change mitigation foley et al. A good understanding of the availability and quality of global flw data is a prerequisite for tracking progress on reduction targets, analyzing environmental impacts. This publication is based on studies carried out from august 2010 to january 2011 by the swedish institute for food and biotechnology sik on request from. The workshop, the fourth in the series, was attended by several eminent australian academics and thinkers. It is worth noting that food waste and food loss directly relates to waste of money, time, energy, land, and many more resources. The business case for reducing food loss and waste a report on behalf of champions 12. Roughly onethird of food produced for human consumption is lost or wasted. Food loss and waste occurs throughout the value chain, from farm production, handling and storage issues, to packing and distribution at the factory and, finally, during consumption by the consumer. Food losses occurring at consumption stage are called food waste. These values indicate that food wastage leads to wasted natural resources and excessive greenhouse gas ghg emissions both in japan and in countries that export to japan.
The first international workshop on food loss and food waste, hosted by the world bank, the korean green growth trust fund and the commission for environmental cooperation, held in washington dc on november 79, 2016 brought together experts from government, civil society, the private sector, cuttingedge food bank operators, and nongovernmental organizations to discuss the key challenges and. A third highlight is the launch of the online food waste atlas, a global repository of food loss and waste data. No accurate estimates of the extent of flw are available, but studies indicate that flw is roughly 30 percent of all food globally fao 2015. Food waste and food loss both end up with the same result. Further, it identifies causes of food losses and possible ways of. Given the existing food security and increased resource scarcity challenges, the issue of food loss and waste flw has become very important for the international agenda as it has farreaching social, economic and environmental implications. The authors would like to thank lisa kitinoja, adel kader, felicitas schneider, vaclav smil and jesper. Food losses and food waste flw occur along the whole food supply chain. Pdf global food losses and food waste extent, causes. Global food losses and food waste extent, causes and prevention. Global food losses and food waste extent, causes and prevention fao, 2011, authorjosephine gustafsson and christel cederberg and ulf sonesson and andreas emanuelsson. Global food losses and food waste food and agriculture.
The united nations set a target under sustainable development goal 12 responsible consumption and production to reduce by half the per capita global food waste at the retail and consumer levels and reduce food losses along production and supply chains, including postharvest losses. The study seeks insight into the reasons for food losses and waste, and the means to reduce them. Global food loss index gfli, measuring the total losses of ag. Loss and wastage occur at all stages of the food supply chain or value chain. The results of the study suggest that roughly onethird of food produced for human consumption is lost or wasted globally, which amounts to about 1. Global food losses and food waste food secure canada.
In recent years, flw has become a global concern and poses considerable challenges to food security the economist intelligence unit, 2014, natural resources, environment katajajuuri et al. A global food loss and waste protocol could provide companies and countries with a standardized way to measure and monitor food loss and waste. Pdf on jan 1, 2011, jenny gustavsson and others published global food losses and food waste find, read and cite all the research you need on researchgate. Global food wastes, postharvest crop losses, long run. It has been estimated that, by 2050, greenhouse gas emissions from food loss and waste could reach 5. The impacts of japanese food losses and food waste on. In essence, the percapita losses for different food groupsat the. An eu agenda 22804331 9788893680547 fighting against food losses and waste. A later section presents food loss estimates in the usa for 2008 using an inferential approach. The effects of reducing food losses and food waste on. An eu agenda by daniele fattibene and margherita bianchi introduction one of the most dramatic phenomena that our society seems to have sadly got used to is the highly unfair distribution of food worldwide. The food and agriculture organization of the united nations fao has estimated that in 20102012, 868 million people were undernourished worldwide. Further, it identifies causes of food losses and possible ways of preventing them.
Global food losses a n d food waste study conducted for the international congress save food. Impacts of reducing global food loss and waste on food. Nevertheless, there is no doubt that food loss and waste remain unacceptably high. Every year, consumers in rich countries waste almost as much food 222 million tonnes as the entire net food production of subsaharan africa 230 million tonnes. By 2050, the global population will reach 9 billion. The food loss and waste accounting and reporting standard, a global standard developed by several stakeholders including the united nations environment programme, wrap and the world resources institute for measuring and reporting food losses and waste, allows flexible definitions of food loss and waste to be used according to the purpose of. For this purpose, we employ the simplified international model of agricultural prices, land use and the environment simple. In general terms, residue byproducts from food crops and animal parts such as shells from shelled nuts, leaves of carrots and orange peels. Rural infrastructure and agroindustries division ags food and agriculture organization of. Food loss and waste in the united states and worldwide. Reducing food loss and waste profiles one of the solutions on this menu and is an installment in a series of working papers leading up to the world resources report. It was proposed as an indicator for the sdg target 12. Food loss and waste flw has become a highly visible global issue.
Although it does consider how food losses and waste relate to. The resulting lost calories could fill persistent hunger gaps in the developing world. Global food losses and food waste extent, causes and. The document, global food losses and food waste, was commissioned by fao from the swedish institute for food and biotechnology sik for save food. Causes and prevention of food losses and waste 10 5. Extent, causes and prevention the study highlights the losses occurring along the entire food chain, and makes assessments of their magnitude. An overview of global food losses and waste this paper began as a series of workshop discussions hosted by future directions international on the subject of global food supply and demand to 2050. High level panel of experts on food security and nutrition of the committee on world food security titled food losses and waste in the context of sustainable food systems. The causes of food waste or loss are numerous and occur at the stages of producing, processing, retailing and consuming global food loss and waste amount to between onethird and onehalf of all food produced. The study highlights the losses occurring along the entire food chain, and makes assessments of their magnitude. Food loss and waste refers to the edible parts of plants. A read is counted each time someone views a publication summary such as the title. Every year, consumers in rich countries waste almost as much food 222 million tonnes as the entire net. Studies commissioned by fao estimated yearly global food loss and waste by quantity at roughly 30 percent of cereals, 4050 percent of root crops.
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