NO TO FOOD WASTE

As per the FAO report, the world wastes around one-third of the food it produces which amounts to around 1.3 billion tonnes and if we are going to use this waste, we can feed every undernourished person on the planet. Beyond the social concerns, this waste is also extremely damaging for the environment and causes around 11% of overall greenhouse gases emissions. Added to this, there is waste of land, water and energy used along the process. To know the numbers for food waste in India, refer to the attached screenshot. While hunger is one of the biggest problems we are facing today and knowing that we have enough food to feed the people, food waste seems like the dumbest problem we have. Here we have the choices to make things better. Leaving the institutions for now, households account for around half of this waste. So here the onus lies on the consumer to realise this and make better choices. Well! It seems like it will take a lot time, resources and creativity, also pressure to come to this sustainability. But, you don't have to change your lifestyle at once and you can take small steps towards this change everyday. And, there are people who have already done a lot of work and are there to make it easy for you. As for food is concerned, it is much simpler. Let us start with it. To know about the ways you can do it, refer: http://www.fao.org/fao-stories/article/en/c/1309609/ Government should also work on this front to promote the awareness not only to prevent the wastage of food in households but also for segregating waste and composting the wet segregated waste. This compost can be used by households, communities and if institutional mechanisms are arranged, it can be transported within the cities as per the needs and requirements. Many NGOs are working on connecting the people who have excess food to the ones who need it. Government should facilitate this mechanism across the nation, so that atleast the amount of food we have is used for feeding. Food industry and retail sector has to bear the cost of storage which prevents them from preserving the food, this can be incentivised. Also, an account of this waste comes from the food supply chain. Here, the onus is on government for incentivising better transport and storage, so that the food is not wasted before reaching the consumer.