Thai editorial: Food waste statistics leave a bad taste

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EDITORIAL
Food waste statistics leave a bad taste
The Nation

We should be ashamed that, globally every year, an area of land three times the size of Thailand is used to grow food that is simply thrown away

BANGKOK: -- About 1.3 billion tonnes of food is lost and wasted globally every year, and one-third of all food produced, worth about US$1 trillion (Bt32 trillion), is lost or wasted in food production and consumption, according to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO).

The agency says the amount of food lost and wasted each year is more than four times what would be needed to solve the world's hunger crisis. Just a quarter of the food wasted is enough to feed the 870 million people, it says.

Poor planning, lack of storage facilities, weak transportation systems, crop disease and parasites are the main causes of food being lost before it reaches consumers. And there is also a growing problem of waste on the part of supermarkets, restaurants and consumers. More and more food is being thrown away, and this trend seems to increase with greater urbanisation.

About 35 per cent of food is lost or wasted after harvest, according to Hiroyuki Konuma, the FAO's assistant director for Asia. "More effort is needed to raise global awareness of the critical issue of food losses and particularly post-harvest losses, as well as food waste, which is increasing," he says.

MS Swaminathan, a geneticist who helped shape India's "green revolution", is also worried about food waste. "Food waste is also a waste of natural resources, like land and water. Food losses and waste are becoming central to discussions on both food security and sustainable development."

Both experts were speaking in Bangkok on Tuesday at the launch of the FAO's Save Food Asia-Pacific campaign.

The World Resources Institute estimates that 198 million hectares - which is more than three times the size of Thailand - is used to produce food that is lost or wasted each year. And 173 billion cubic metres of water is used to grow lost or wasted food, representing 24 per cent of all water used for agriculture.

These figures are shocking. To even begin to put these losses into reverse, the effort must start with each and every one of us.

Among farmers, educational and infrastructure measures must be supported to improve harvesting techniques and storage facilities and conditions in order to reduce as much as possible the loss of food before it reaches markets and consumers.

Food can also be wasted due to overly stringent quality standards, which reject food items not perfect in shape or appearance even though they are still edible.

Perhaps most importantly, we as individual consumers need to change the behaviour that leads to food waste. The FAO advises us to plan our meals more carefully, make shopping lists and avoid impulse buying, as well as staying alert to "marketing tricks that lead you to buy more food than you need". Another good idea is to buy fruit or vegetables that would otherwise be thrown out because their size, shape or colour isn't "perfect".

In some developed countries like the United States, there are groups of "freegans" who adopt an anti-consumerist lifestyle and reclaim and eat food that's been discarded. Average consumers don't need to go that far, but they should be aware there are many people who do not allow food to be wasted, and take a lesson from that. By the same token, there are many more people whose lives would be improved immeasurably if they had access to the food that's thrown away by those more fortunate.


-- The Nation 2013-08-29

[theblether]

Yes it's a problem, especially the rejection of fruit and vegetables because they are too "ugly". Supermarkets are bad for that. Put out the "ugly" fruit and veg a wee bit cheaper and it will fly off the shelf.

Better that than binning it.

[lujanit]

The answer to this dilemma could not possibly be profit and/or subsidy? Thai rice maybe?

[Nooky2]

There's no waste in my house. When I finish eating my wife goes through my plate to see if I left anything behind. She's a food Nazi.

[tingtongteesood]

Speak for yourself, I throw away food only if it is unsuitable for consumption. I eat 99.5% of what I buy. Part of the problem is that people see wasting food as good 'face', 'Look at me ! I'm so rich I can afford to piss money away buying food I won't eat !' Well whoopteedoo ! So what !?

[belg]

don't you hate all those people ordering food in the restaurant and leaving half a plate, half a drink

i wonder sometimes if the staff helps empty it or not

[notmyself]

Yes it's a problem, especially the rejection of fruit and vegetables because they are too "ugly". Supermarkets are bad for that. Put out the "ugly" fruit and veg a wee bit cheaper and it will fly off the shelf.

Better that than binning it.

The restrictions imposed by the EU were eased (a little) 4-5 years back as I remember. Supermarkets do at least move items with a short shelf life to a discount location within the store for the most part.

[northernjohn]

don't you hate all those people ordering food in the restaurant and leaving half a plate, half a drink

i wonder sometimes if the staff helps empty it or not

The worst is the buffet's where you can control what goes on the plate.

[muchogra]

My wife watches the Chinese TV channels on our satellite. There has been messages over the channels about the wasted food yearly, mainly in eateries, whih is enough to feed 200 million people. I don't remember the dollar figure given exactly, but I think it's 200 billion yuans. As a result of these messages, people are starting to order less and even have leftovers packed in piggybags without thinking of solely about FACE. There are also many of these social messages like: saving water, visiting parents, etc.. Hope Thailand will start doing such!

I, myself, have some close friends who always leave about 15% of the food they order even when they like them. Those that they don't like so much, they leave more than 50%. I detest such behaviour and often tell them in their face for such a bad habit for showing off especially to a close friend like me who knows what they've got. These are the same people who only look at items above a certain prices before they decide to buy. It's no wonder that some run on a tight budget even though they have quite good an income.

[hon123]

Race should never be wasted