The amount of food wasted around the world has ranked as the third largest culprit in carbon emissions, right behind China and the US according to a recent United Nations report.
The report, titled the Food Wastage Footprint Report, was developed by the UN Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), and states that 1.3b tonnes of food – equating to around a third of global consumption- is wasted.
In addition to the serious environmental impacts created by the waste, the study points out that the wasted food represents a missed opportunity to improve global food security.
The study provides a comprehensive global account of the environmental impact that food wastage creates along the supply chain with a focus on the impacts on climate, water, land and biodiversity.
The report divided the world into seven regions across a wide range of agricultural products that represent eight major food commodity groups, and highlights ‘global environmental hotspots’ related to food wastage at regional and sub-sectoral levels.
Key points of the report include:
- Wastage of cereals in Asia emerges as a significant problem for the environment, with major impacts on carbon, blue water and arable land. Rice represents a significant share of these impacts, given the high carbon-intensity of rice production methods (e.g. paddies are major emitters of methane), combined with high quantities of rice wastage.
- Wastage of meat, even though wastage volumes in all regions are comparatively low, generates a substantial impact on the environment in terms of land occupation and carbon footprint, especially in high income regions (that waste about 67 percent of meat) and Latin America.
- Fruit wastage emerges as a blue water hotspot in Asia, Latin America, and Europe because of food wastage volumes.
- Vegetables wastage in industrialised Asia, Europe, and South and South East Asia constitutes a high carbon footprint, mainly due to large wastage volumes.
The report states; “By highlighting the magnitude of the environmental footprint of food wastage, the results of this study – by regions, commodities or phases of the food supply chain – allow prioritising actions and defining opportunities for various actors’ contributions to resolving this global challenge.”