International Day of Awareness of Food Loss and Waste

Name: International Day of Awareness of Food Loss and Waste
Start: 2020-09-29

29 September 2020

Overview

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This year we celebrate the first ever observance of the International Day of Awareness of Food Loss and Waste.

Food Waste - Why does it matter?

Today, an estimated one third of all the food produced in the world goes to waste. That’s equal to about 1.3 billion tons of fruits, vegetables, meat, dairy, seafood, and grains that either never leave the farm, get lost or spoiled during distribution, or are thrown away in hotels, grocery stores, restaurants, schools, or home kitchens. It could be enough calories to feed every undernourished person on the planet. (Source WWF)

Food loss and waste is also an environmental concern. It occupies land larger than the surface area of China and India combined and water resources three times greater than the volume of Lake Geneva, impacting ecosystems and biodiversity.

Actions are required at the local and global level to rethink the way we produce and consume food. Reducing food loss and waste requires the attention and actions of all, from food producers, to food supply chain stakeholders, to food industries, retailers and consumers.

Reducing Food Waste – A key climate solution

A study by Project Drawdown, a coalition of experts focused on climate change solutions, ranks reducing food waste as the No. 1 action item out of 80 – to the tune of 87.45 gigatons of carbon reduction. If, as a planet, we stopped food loss and waste altogether, we would eliminate 8% of our total emissions.

KEY MESSAGES

There is no room for food loss and waste in this time of crisis! The COVID-19 pandemic is a wake-up call to rethink the way in which we produce, handle and waste our food.
Reducing food loss and waste provides a powerful means to rebuild more sustainable food systems.
Food loss and waste generates 8% of global greenhouse gas emissions. Cutting this back is one of the most effective ways that we as individuals, and our governments, can reduce our climate impact.
Countries should adopt SDG Target 12.3, measure national data, take policy action, and include food loss and waste in their Climate plans under the Paris Agreement.
Individuals can shop carefully, store food correctly and make good use of leftovers.
Sustainable cold chain practices help minimize food loss and waste, through the wise selection of technologies, regular preventative maintenance, optimal temperature control and proper storage of chilled or frozen products.
Innovative business models, public private partnerships and cross-supply chain collaboration, together with new approaches to finance them, are needed to stop food loss and food waste.
We should all be food savers: for the people, for the planet!

As custodian of the food waste indicator for Sustainable Development Goal target 12.3 on food loss and waste, UNEP is developing a Food Waste Index to track country progress and is improving the ability of countries to measure food waste and develop national strategies. Regional Working Groups on Food Waste Measurement will be launched to build capacity in food waste data collection, through international expertise and South-South collaboration.

UNEP’s longstanding public campaign on food waste, Think.Eat.Save, published guidance for food waste prevention programmes for countries and companies. Through the One Planet Network’s Sustainable Tourism Programme, UNEP co-develops national roadmaps for the tourism sector and hotels to address food waste and single-use plastics together.

Through the UN Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, UNEP is also looking at how we can reduce the pressures on ecosystems and land, while meeting the growing demands for food and fiber worldwide. Eating lower on the food chain and ensuring what’s grown gets eaten is a powerful combination that lowers farming inputs, land-clearing, and all associated emissions.

To address the lack of refrigeration and spoilage in transport and processing, UNEP Cool Coalition is working with India and Cambodia to develop action plans to eliminate breaks in the cold chain. UNEP has also launched a new African Centre of Excellence for sustainable cooling and the cold chain which will help farmers get their produce to market quickly and efficiently – reducing food waste, boosting profits and creating jobs. UNEP is also modelling global food cold chain capacity, currently being piloted in six countries.

Enhancing Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) for Food Systems report. The publication offers guidance and recommendations for policymakers to increase ambition in NDCs under the Paris Agreement using the climate change mitigation and adaptation potential of a transition to sustainable food systems. Press release.

Think.Eat.Save Think.Eat.Save, is a partnership between UNEP and FAO contributing to the Sustainable Food Systems Programme of the One Planet Network, to raise awareness of global and local food waste and how to reduce its impact.

Champions 12.3 Champions 12.3 is a coalition of executives from governments, businesses, international organizations, research institutions, farmer groups, and civil society dedicated to inspiring ambition, mobilizing action, and accelerating progress toward achieving SDG Target 12.3 by 2030.

Waste Not, Want Not This report examines ways in which life cycle thinking and related tools such as life cycle assessment can be used to inform effective policymaking, aimed at reducing food loss and waste.

The Edible Schoolyard Project The Edible Schoolyard Project is dedicated to transforming the health of children by designing hands-on educational experiences in the garden, kitchen, and cafeteria that connect children to food, nature, and to each other.

Join our Digital Campaign and share your Kitchen Memories

“Kitchen Memories”, running from 29 September to 16 October (World Food Day) , is an invitation to share your most precious recipes and tips on reducing food waste. The ones you learned from your grandparents, the ones that have become a family tradition, and the ones that you came across by curiously sifting through cookbooks, videos and cooking with friends.

HERE IS HOW YOU CAN TAKE ACTION AND SHARE YOUR #KitchenMemories

1. Share your tips or recipe

2. Add a picture or video to illustrate your tips or recipes. It can be a picture of a recipe or one the ingredients, or even a selfie in your kitchen – this is a space for creativity and fun, so find an interesting way to do so!

3. Tag 3 people/organizations/ companies and challenge them to share their #KitchenMemories

Don’t forget to mention @UNEP, @FAO and use #KitchenMemories and #FLWDay

For more information, download our flyer.

More information and materials will be shared as they become available. In the meantime, for any queries please contact:

Clementine O’Connor, Programme Officer, Sustainable Food Systems -clementine.oconnor@un.org Sophie Loran, Communications Officer, Energy & Climate Branch - sophie.loran@un.org Catherine Beltrandi, Outreach Officer, Communications Division –catherine.beltrandi@un.org