The report focuses on food losses on farms, harvesting and slaughter. This is the first quantitative data on total food losses on farms since 2011.
Combined with updated data on supply chain losses and waste in retail and consumption, the picture of the extent of food loss and waste from the economy to the consumer is clearer. It also indicates the amount It is important to halve food loss and waste throughout the supply chain and not just in retail and consumption Most notably, the authors of the report published on wwf.panda.org.
So a lot of land, water and energy is used to produce food Food waste has a major impact on climate change: It was previously estimated to be responsible for 8 percent of greenhouse gases. According to the new report, the numbers are even higher, and
About 10 percent of all emissions are attributable to food waste.
that’s it In the United States and Europe, about twice as much carbon emissions are caused by all the cars that travel in a year Equivalent.
Worldwide, 4.4 million square kilometers of farmland and 760 million cubic meters of water have been used to produce an estimated 1.2 billion tons of food lost before, during and after harvest, or used for other purposes such as animal feed and biofuels. That’s the equivalent of an area larger than the Indian subcontinent and the equivalent of 304 million Olympic swimming pools – and yet does not include the additional resources used to produce food that is wasted at other stages of the supply chain.
The report refutes the long-held view that food loss on farms is a problem only in less affluent, less industrialized regions. In fact, it turns out that Per capita losses for farms are generally higher in industrial areas. 58 percent of global crop waste is generated in high- and middle-income countries.
Cover photo: Jens Kalaene / picture alliance via Getty Images
