Food waste exceeds 900 million tons, according to UN research

An estimated 931 million tons of food, or 17 percent of all food available to consumers in 2019, ended up in the trash bins at households, retailers, restaurants and other grocery services. This emerges from new UN research conducted to support global efforts to halve food wasted by 2030.

The weight is roughly equivalent to that of 23 million fully loaded 40-ton trucks – enough bumper to bumper to circle the earth seven times.

The Food Waste Index Report 2021 from the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP) and partner organization WR are investigating incidents in retail stores, restaurants and private homes – counting both food and inedible parts such as bones and mussels.

The report finds that almost every country where food waste was measured was significant regardless of income level. It shows that most of it comes from households, which throw away 11 percent of all available food at the consumption stage of the supply chain. Food services and retail stores waste five percent and two percent, respectively.

At the global pro-cita level, 121 kilograms of food are wasted at the consumer level every year, 74 kilograms of it in households. The report also includes regional and national pro-cita estimates.

The problem has significant environmental, social and economic implications. For example, at a time when climate action is still lagging behind, the researchers behind the report claim that eight to 10 percent of global greenhouse gas emissions are associated with unconsumed food, when losses are taken into account before consumer levels.

„Reducing food waste would lower greenhouse gas emissions, slow the destruction of nature from land conversion and pollution, improve food availability and thereby reduce hunger and save money in times of global recession,” said Inger Andersen, Executive Director of UNEP.

“If we are to seriously address climate change, the loss of nature and biodiversity, and pollution and waste, businesses, governments and citizens around the world must do their part to reduce food waste.

This year’s UN Food Systems Summit is an opportunity to launch bold new measures to tackle food waste around the world. „

„For a long time it was believed that household food waste was only a significant problem in developed countries,” said Marcus Gover, CEO of WR, a UK-based NGO that works with government and businesses to improve sustainability.

“With the release of the Food Waste Index report, we can see that things are not so clear-cut.

“In just nine years, we will not achieve SDG 12 target 3 if we do not significantly increase investments in combating food waste in private households around the world. This needs to be a priority for governments, international organizations, corporations, and philanthropic foundations. „