Why reduce food waste?
Food Waste in NZ
The UN Environmental Programme estimates that globally one third of the food produced for human consumption is wasted.
At home, New Zealand households throw away 157,389 tonnes of food annually, enough to feed 337,744 people or the population of Dunedin for three years.
That costs $1.17 billion a year.
For Kiwi families, that is the equivalent of three shopping trolleys of edible food going to landfill each year. For the average household that is at least $664 worth of food going to waste and for some it's over $1,000 per year.
Eliminating this food waste would have the same effect as reducing CO2 equivalent emissions by 409,234 tonnes – that's like planting 163,694 trees or taking 150,453 cars off the road for a year..
Why is it important to reduce food loss and waste?
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.
Our food systems cannot be resilient if they are not sustainable, hence the need to focus on the adoption of integrated approaches designed to reduce food loss and waste. Actions are required globally and locally to maximise the use of the food we produce. The introduction of technologies, innovative solutions (including e-commerce platforms for marketing, retractable mobile food processing systems), new ways of working and good practices to manage food quality and reduce food loss and waste are key to implementing this transformative change.
