FOOD WASTAGE

[Audio] RESPONSIBLE CONSUMPTION OF FOOD STUFF .. RESPONSIBLE CONSUMPTION OF FOOD STUFF ..

[Audio] INTRODUCTION  Food waste occurs along the entire spectrum of production, from the farm to distribution to retailers to the consumer. Reasons include losses from mold, pests, or inadequate climate control; losses from cooking; and intentional food waste..

[Audio] IMPORTANCE OF FOOD  Food is one of the basic necessities of life. Food contains nutrients— substances essential for the growth, repair, and maintenance of body tissues and for the regulation of vital processes. Nutrients provide the energy our bodies need to function..

[Audio] CAUSES OF FOOD WASTE  Lack of Appropriate Planning.  purchase and preparation of excess food.  Errors in industrial processing and keeping up with food safety policy .  Managerial, financial and technical constraints.  Over preparation of food in restaurants,hotels and the food service industry..

[Audio] 1.LACK OF APPROPRIATE PLANNING.  One of the top contributors to food wastage is because of a lack of appropriate planning on the consumer's part.  Sometimes people buy lots of food without appropriately planning when and how the food will be prepared for consumption..

[Audio] 2.PURCHASE AND PREPARATION OF EXCESS FOOD.  Most of the time, food is wasted by purchasing, preparing, or serving more than we need. When this happens, the excess food on the plate or cooking pot goes to waste.  Alternatively, the partially used food is sometimes put at the back of the fridge and never reused. The same applies to excess purchases that pass their expiration dates and therefore look, taste, and smell terrible. At the end of it all, all the excess ends up as waste food..

[Audio] 3.ERRORS IN INDUSTRIAL PROCESSING AND KEEPING UP WITH FOOD SAFETY POLICIES  Another significant driving factor for food wastage is the protocol on food safety. The food safety protocols give no room for error in industrial processing or any other compromise that diminishes the final food product quality..

[Audio] 4.MANAGERIAL, FINANCIAL, AND TECHNICAL CONSTRAINTS  This is mainly a challenge contributing to food wastage in developing countries.  The wastage occurs due to the constraints of improper management, inadequate finances, and technical difficulties in harvesting methods, storage, and cooling problems..

[Audio] 5. OVER-PREPARATION OF FOOD IN RESTAURANTS, HOTELS, AND THE FOODSERVICE INDUSTRY  Most restaurants, hotels, and the food service industry alike have a tendency to over-preparing/producing food.  While the intention is good, especially in anticipation of high customer volume and the ability to not run out of the menu, over-preparation often leads to the wastage of all the unsold food..

[Audio] EFFECTS OF FOOD WASTE  Biodiversity Loss  Wastage of 1/3 of the World's Fertile Land Regions  Blue Water Footprint  Increased Carbon Footprint and Acceleration of Climate Change.  Economic consequences.

[Audio] 1. Biodiversity Loss Food wastage impacts biodiversity loss at a global level. Farmers have increasingly invaded wild areas to maximize agricultural yields in search of more fertile lands, leading to the extinction of different species. ..

[Audio] 2.Wastage of 1/3 of the World's Fertile Land Regions According to research, the produced but unconsumed food accounts for approximately 1.4 billion hectares, constituting almost 1/3 of the planet's agricultural land..

[Audio] 3.Blue Water Footprint The volume of water used in agricultural food production is immense. Therefore, if 30 percent of all the food produced goes to waste, then it means that more than 30 percent of freshwater used in the production and processing of food also goes to waste..

[Audio] 4.Increased Carbon Footprint and Acceleration of Climate Change The food produced and later goes to waste is estimated to be equivalent to 3.3 billion tons of greenhouse gas emissions, accelerating the impacts of climate change. Research also states that food waste is the third biggest emitter of greenhouse gases..

[Audio] 5.Economic consequences In addition to the environmental impacts, food wastage also results in direct economic costs. FAO's report estimates the economic losses associated with food wastage are about $750 billion dollars per annum..

[Audio]  Reducing food loss and waste is essential in a world where millions of people go hungry daily. When we reduce waste, we respect the labor, effort, investment, and precious resources (like water, seeds, feed, etc.) that go into producing it, not to mention the resources that go into transporting and processing it. AMAZING SOLUTIONS TO FOOD WASTE.

[Audio] 1. BALANCING FOOD PRODUCTION WITH DEMAND  Foremost, precedence should be centered on balancing food production with the demand to reduce the problem of food wastage. The first thing is to reduce using natural resources in food production..

[Audio] 2. IMPROVING FOOD HARVESTING, STORAGE, PROCESSING, AND DISTRIBUTION PROCESSES  The second strategy should be placed on developing efficient technologies and production systems that better storage, harvesting, processing, and distribution processes..

[Audio] 3. FOOD WASTE REDUCTION INITIATIVES  Supermarkets, retail food outlets, big restaurants, and individual consumers alike can also work on their own tailored and creative efforts to reduce their food footprint..

[Audio] 4.CONSUMERS TO BUY AND PREPARE FOOD WITH A PLAN  Using meal plans to prepare food can go a long way in ending food disposal. Consumers should only buy food according to their plans or in small batches to reduce the food that goes to waste due to expiration after long storage periods..

[Audio] 5. FOOD RECYCLING  Food recycling efforts are underway, but the technologies and methods should be improved.  Starch-rich foodstuffs such as crisps, bread, biscuits, and breakfast cereals can be recycled into high-quality feeds for livestock..

[Audio] CONCLUSION  Food loss and waste undermine the sustainability of our food systems. When food is lost or wasted, all the resources that were used to produce this food - including water, land, energy, labour and capital - go to waste. In addition, the disposal of food loss and waste in landfills, leads to greenhouse gas emissions, contributing to climate change. Food loss and waste can also negatively impact food security and food availability, and contribute to increasing the cost of food..