Our food systems and consumption practices are major contributors to the triple planetary crisis of climate change, nature and biodiversity loss, and pollution and waste. This reality resonated at the UN Food Systems Summit held last week, where we heard more than 100 member states, companies and foundations commit to addressing the critical need for a complete overhaul of our food systems. There is now significant political will at the country-level to work on food systems. And an immediate to-do item for us is to begin with addressing food loss and waste.
Food loss and waste account for up to ten per cent of greenhouse gas emissions. They use up precious land and water resources for, essentially, nothing. Look, we will never eliminate food waste and loss. But putting a serious dent in them will help us to slow climate change, protect nature and increase food security – at a time when we desperately need these things to happen.
The challenge we face is that consumer food waste is a far bigger problem than previously thought, and one that affects middle-income countries as well as high-income countries. UNEP’s Food Waste Index report found that households, food services and retail wasted 931 million tonnes of food in 2019, around 17 per cent of all food available for human consumption. Households generate an average 74kg per person per year, more than the body weight of an average person.
But while these findings are disturbing, they are a necessary step in the right direction. We cannot address a problem correctly unless we know it’s full scale and character. Measuring food waste is key to create a case for action, target hotspots, evaluate the impact of interventions and track progress to 2030.
So, the Food Waste Index Report is a direct contribution towards achieving, SDG12.3 which aims at halving per capita global food waste at retail and consumer levels. And, to accelerate action, UNEP is launching Regional Food Waste Working Groups, in Africa, Asia Pacific, Latin America and the Caribbean and West Asia. These groups will provide technical support and peer-to-peer learning, helping countries measure baselines using a globally applicable methodology and develop national food waste prevention strategies.
Friends, food waste reduction offers multiple benefits.
Food security. Cost savings at all levels. Climate mitigation. A reduced burden on, and pollution of, land and water. Protection for biodiversity by using existing agricultural land more efficiently and so reducing the push for expansion. Countries must be bold and seize these benefits by measuring food waste, integrating food waste into their national climate plans and acting on sustainable cold chains.
In particular, sustainable cold chain is a transformational opportunity to reduce food loss, improve food security and boost farmers’ livelihoods. Efforts like the Cool Coalition and Africa Centre of Excellence for Sustainable Cooling and Cold-Chain (ACES), led by UNEP, can accelerate the uptake of sustainable cold chain solutions in the agriculture and health sectors, throughout Africa and beyond.
Equally, the new Food is Never Waste Coalition presents an opportunity for countries, cities, the private sector and others to signal their commitment to meeting SDG 12.3. This Coalition was launched last week at the the UN Food Systems Summit. Twelve countries and the C40 Cities group have already joined. I call on other partners to join the fight.
We must also never forget that we have a personal and professional responsibility to reduce food waste. Pretty much every person listening here today has, I am sure, wasted food in the last week. Perhaps some leftovers that got shoved behind the milk, or ingredients for that culinary masterpiece we ran out of time to cook. Every organization represented, I am sure, could do more to reduce food waste in their cafeterias when staff start to return in numbers. We need to do everything we can: not just for the direct impact, but to set the example and show it can be done.
So, yes, the burden of food waste and loss is heavy. But if we all get our shoulders beneath this burden, we can shift it.
Thank you.
Executive Director
