On 29 september, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) celebrates the observance of the Day of Awareness of Food Loss and Waste.

Reducing food losses and waste is essential in a world where the number of people affected by hunger has been slowly on the rise since 2014, and tons and tons of edible food are lost and/or wasted every day. The Day of Awareness of Food Loss and Waste is an opportunity to call to action both the public (national or local authorities) and the private sector (businesses and individuals), to prioritise actions and move ahead with innovation to reduce food loss and waste towards restoring and building back better and resilient-ready, food systems. 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. To reach target 1, 2, and 3 of Sustainable Development Goal 12 (SDG) in 2030, there is an urgent need to accelerate action to reduce food loss and waste.

Links:
Day of Awareness of Food Loss and Waste

#ZeroHunger Wereldvoedseldag / #WorldFoodDay

#verspillingsvrij Verspillingsvrije Week

Day of Awareness on Food Loss and Waste Reduction