Expert challenge: what could you do?
Pete has really enjoyed reading your comments on the Hub so he’s decided to set you a challenge! Play the video to find out what his challenge questions are.
Over to you!
Answer the challenge questions in the comments below.
- How would you reduce food waste in your communities and countries?
- What could governments, shops, schools and families do to reduce food waste?
- What could you do to reduce food waste?
We look forward to seeing your ideas!
Comments (171)
We can reduce food waste in the community by launching campaigns to spare an plate for needy and hungary at all the food spots.
We can reduce the wastage in our country by designing and supporting the policies for zero waste programs. i.e. there must be laws for all stakeholders in the country and wastage of must be entitled as crime in any country.
There must be awareness programs a and curriculam should be recommended at schools and rule to design about food sharing and zero wastage.
Left overs of food either organic or inorganic must not be in the dustbin. Discourage the food storage. Habit of denominations and sharing food. Promote the kitchen garden and organic food.
I agree because your ideas will surely help in reducing the food wastage . These ideas need to be implemented
Really thankful for the appreciation of my suggestions.
Globally,14%of food is lost between harvest and retail . Significant quantities are also wasted in retail and at consumption level.An estimated 18%of total global food production is wasted (11% in household,5% in food service and 2% in retail).
Food waste burdens waste management system, increase food insecurity and is contributer to climate change , biodiversity loss and land pollution.
Taking myself as an example ,I also wastes 30%of my food.It has bad impact on environment.
Food waste that cannot be recycled may sent to landfill where it rots, causing a bad affect on environment by releasing methane.
We can save food by putting leftovers in the fridge in shallow containers so they cool down
quickly to help extend their shelf life.
@itelligent_parrot some well researched points there, well done! Why do you think so much food is lost and wasted at each stage you mentioned?
The most common reason in my point of view is lack of awareness and it has become habit.
For many people in the world, food waste has become a habit, as we buy more food in the market, leave fruits and vegetables to spoil in our homes or take away more rations than we can eat.
These habits put additional pressure on our natural resources and harm our environment. When we waste food, we waste the work, effort, investment, and precious resources (such as water, seeds, fodder, etc.) invested in producing it, not to mention the resources devoted to transporting and processing food. In short, food waste increases greenhouse gas emissions and contributes to climate change.
So we have a big problem and we have to stop wasting food. First, we have to adopt a healthier and more sustainable eating pattern. Second, we make sure that we buy only our food, three, store food wisely, and fourth, we respect food because it is a blessing of God's blessing upon us, and food forms a bond between people. We must renew our relationship with food. By outlining the procedures involved for its manufacture, reading the literature on how food is produced, and learning about the farmers whose produce we buy.
I agree because... We as human beings should learn how to be more worried about how we can solve this global crisis and worry less about their causes. If we can put all you have mentioned into consideration and divert the energy they use to worry into finding a solution, I am very sure it will be a step to end this global food crisis.
According to my vision Food waste refers to the food which was thrown away, since it was not needed because when you take extra food in your bowl or plate without knowing your capacity to eat, then wastage of food happens. Wastage of food can occur at any stage whether in production, processing or packaging, as it has to go to the market for sale and consumption, which is known as food supply chain.
@observant_thought a good comment. Can you tell me how you think food waste could be reduced in your community?
To reduce waste in my community i would first take step from my home which as already taken
By not to waste food , and give it to needy or storing for next time
And then next there are many ways to reduce food waste from community
1. Raising awareness
2. Awaring people of my own family not to put extra in plates which u can't eat
Because this usually happens in parties and martige cermonies
And also there are many other steps
Within the 21 century countries pay attention to digital literacy. I think it is the time for consumption literacy. That includes teaching everyone how to reduce consuming the materials and how to get benefit from the things to the extreme . More, that includes draw attention towards the global issues and environmental problems.
Yes i agree but you may also know that their is not much facility of internet in lower areas of Pakistan
But that's really a good idea and many people are awaring through media ( thanks to these people )
And the last thing which i would say and i have observed in pandemic is
That the thing which u learn face to face is much better than online.
I agree because... The situation of my country is just exactly like your country. In many occasion,food wastage is common all because perishable foods are the things we eat mostly like tomatoes,fishes etc,all these things i mentioned above,if not taken immediately,it get spoilt which is not good for us and the community and this can cause flood if not properly disposed.
first,in my community there is a high rate of food wastage since many people decide to put much on their plates and yet they cannot finish it so they decide to throw it away instead of serving some to those that donot have what to eat.I can only reduce this wastage by teaching people the importance of food in their bodies so as they can get to know that their losing things like vitamins,proteins,carbohydrates.
I can also teach them how to budget first before they can prepare a certain amount because when they budget,they will get to know the number of people who are going to eat that food instead of cooking 10kilograms of posho for five people but instead prepare 1kilogram thus reducing food wastage.
I agree with you . It is possible to use the food pyramid to find out the appropriate amount of food for each individual and to know the type of food that contains the best proportion of nutrients suitable for the human body.
I agree because that's what we also witnessing in Nigeria, there is high rate of food wastage.
People who have much to eat only care about themselves, whenever they eat and the food remains they will throw away the left over.
Yes budgeting of food can also make people realize the usefulness of food.
Wow polite_football. I cannot believe how relatable your comment is. You are right one of the reasons for food wastage is that people overserve food and they do not know how to budget before cooking food. Something similar has happened to me before. I usually make food for my siblings and one day I made food for them and asked them the amount they could finish. They kept on telling me to add more food for them I was skeptical at first but I added the food. At the end, my siblings wasted the food. I was not happy with them and I sat them down to give them reasons why they should not waste food. I told them how there are many people looking for the food that was thrown in the dustbin and they felt sorry. Ever since then they have not wasted food and they ask me to make additional packs of lunches for them to take to school and give some of their schoolmates who don't have food to bring and eat in school.
This got me thinking... apart from budgeting meals and making sure to serve food that one can finish, what other way can people at home try to reduce food wastage. Here is what I came up with.
1.) Many people do not know that leftover foods can be used to make other meals. Some people throw leftovers away thinking they are useless. There are many new and different foods one can make with leftover and it the food will still be healthy. For example, there is a food we call yam in Nigeria and when there are leftovers of boiled yam people throw them away thinking nothing new can be made from them but that is not so. One can make yam balls and other new foods out of it. According to www.kitchencabinetkings.com, "Americans waste about 240 pounds of food per person, which means 20 percent of the food that ends up on people's plates gets thrown away every year. This is enough to feed 2 billion people annually." I shared the idea of reusing leftovers with some of my friends and many of them have started doing same too!
2.) Perishable foods, fruits and spices should be preserved so that they will last longer.
I also think that supermarkets can do something too to help reduce food wastage...
1.) When restaurants discover that foods are nearing the date when they can't be sold anymore and the food is still in excess they should consider giving the food to people who do not have food to eat because majority of the food thrown out back of supermarkets end up in landfills and this also contributes to wastage so if supermarkets do not want the food, they should give it to people who do. According to www.rts.com, "About 30 percent of food in American grocery stores is thrown away. US retail stores generate about 16 billion pounds of food waste every year." This is a large amount of food that could have been used to solve the problem of hunger among many people.
Aside from budgeting for meals and making sure food is served so that one can finish it, what other way can people at home try to reduce food waste. This is what I came up with.
1) Many people do not know that leftovers can be used to prepare other meals. Some people throw leftovers away, thinking that they are useless. There are many new and different foods one can make from leftovers and the food will still be healthy. For example, when there are leftover boiled potatoes, people throw them away thinking that nothing new can be made from them but this is not the case. One can cut it into circles, fry it, make it as a snack, and eat it instead of throwing it away and wasting it. Food must be preserved
2) Perishable foods, fruits and spices should be preserved so that they last longer
3) When restaurants find out that foods are approaching the date when they can no longer be sold and the food is still excess, they should consider giving the food to people who have no food to eat because the majority of food is thrown out from supermarkets and ends up in landfills Waste and that also contributes to waste, so if supermarkets don't want food, they should give it to people who want it.
4)I'm going to make it plain that leftovers shouldn't be in the trash. I will discourage stocking up on food. Donations and food sharing must be highly encouraged in order to achieve Zero Hunger programmes. Promote a kitchen garden and organic foods to support healthy eating.
I would educate the uneducated on the dangers of wasting food like you may have some left overs and instead of keeping them for the mere future to eat and in this way you won't have to spend any coin, If i were among the government members I would place fines on people who waste food and in this way food waste would be limited.
Families should cook enough food that can be consumed by the whole family and this way no food will be wasted, shops also have food which has an expiry date so if a certain food is not being bought the shop should donate it to the needy to prevent food wastage, schools should budget well for the food it will need to cater for the students per month and buy the right amount to prevent having extra useless food, governments should also donate some food to the needy.
I would make sure the above is done to prevent food wastage.
You are 100% correct... Your comment attracted me and reminded me of a picture that passed to me on Facebook asking to find the difference between rich and poor. In the picture of the poor, there was a lot of food in front of him, but in the picture of the rich, it was little food. Therefore, I agree with you that awareness must be made that distinction is not by taking more food. . Stores must determine the quantity as well as the quality and price...
I agree because wasting of food is like wasting the effort of the producer resources. people should minimize the way they waste food, like High spririted king has rightly said families should cook enough food that can be consumed by the whole family.
Well you said if you were a government member you would place fines on families who waste food which would be a very good way to stop wastage, how would you know as a government member that families are wasting food because most families eat their food within their household and waste within their household, for example I and my family eat food and then there is a lot of remnant left in our plate and we decide to through the food in our house dustbin. Well how would you know that we did that ,which method are you going to use to carry out this preventive measure?
As a student and a member of my community would advise the people on the dangers of wasting food and to also remind them that there are people out there that lack what to eat and I would also put up posters or flyers containing the same message.
I think the government should put a law that restricts people from throwing away food or even fine them for the food they have thrown same can be applied in a restaurant incase a customer comes in buys food eats some and leaves the rest, they should be given a fine.
For the families and schools, I think they should try talking to the children and tell them why it is bad to throw food and if that fails, they should just try disciplining them because for us in Uganda most parents follow the proverb "Spoil the rod and spoil the child".
The government can help to reduce food waste by organizing community talks to educate people about how they can preserve their food forexample by smoking,salting,refridgerating and sundrying like fish
I agree because... I like your way of thinking, everyone has thought of negative ways to waste food
Except for your way of thinking, I liked it and it made me dig deeper into good thinking about waste and food waste used in other ways. Can you suggest other ways to benefit from the large amounts of waste?!
I know we trying to reduce food wastes but don't you think that these food wastes are good in a way that they are used as manure which helps in crop growing whereby more food is produced and they are also used as raw materials for some industries.
This is an interesting way to think about it. I wonder what other students think? Could we naturally get manure some other way, even without unnecessary food waste?
Yes it's true there is some other way I had just thought of that.
But others ways would be using artificial fertilizers which is even expensive and also animal wastes which is also expensive in a way that people who only do crop growing will have to buy those wastes from animal farms.
But using leftover food stuffs isn't that expensive.
I agree with the first part that this food serves as manure and can be used as raw material...but only if it is properly treated .. otherwise the food gone in bin or rotten cannot be used as raw material
Hi @idealistic_song.
Yeah it does have a good aspect, but If we don't waste our food in the first place there is no need to convert it into manure right..
And moreover I think that the food waste which should be used to make manure are fruits and vegetable peels, grass clippings and coffee grounds..
Even though it is an effective resource for making the soil fertile and help growing crops in an eco-friendly manner...
Don't you think many people would use that as an excuse when they are wasting their food.
They would simply say that " why worries when this food waste can be turned into manure " and will act incautious?
I disagree because many people in the world are facing hunger problem. This waste food can be utilized to feed them inspite of being thrown away.
But the point you raised that it can be used as manure so I think the animal wastes are the best to be used as manure instead of food
I like your way of thinking, everyone has thought of negative ways to waste food
Except for your way of thinking, I liked it and it made me dig deeper into good thinking about waste and food waste used in other ways. Can you suggest other ways to benefit from the large amounts of waste?!
Actually some of these food wastes are also feeds to some animals like the pigs and remember most people acquire meat from those animals so when you waste food you are actually feeding the animals which in the same way still benefits you
agree with you on that, but we are societies that do not waste food in an acceptable amount, as we know that everything is useful and exceeds its limit, and it becomes a negative impact, so we must do workshops to educate people about the importance of food and reduce waste in it
Food waste is second component of municipal solid waste. Food waste all result in huge energy and water loses associated with producing wasted food. The U.S department of agricultural estimates that people of U.S waste about 27 present of their food. Government scientists today are realized that finding way to reduce food represent a largely unrecognized opportunity to cover energy and to control global warming.
Methods to reduce food waste
1_ Plan meal ahead
2_ Rotate time sensitive food in refrigerator
3_Freeze surplus garden vegetable
4_process or dehydrate surplus or damaged fruits, produce and meat
5_Compost kitchen waste
Some great ideas on how to reduce food waste @spontaneous_raisin! Which one do you think would be the most effective and which one is accessible to the most people?
Thanks for asking I think that planing meals ahead are really important because I observe in my and all the local households so much food is wasted due to unplanned meals .For instance if we cook food that can be obtained by all the family members in this way the food will not be wasted.
We can reduce wastage of food in the community by launching campaigns. By sparing a plate for needy and hungry at a the restaurants and at home.
Policy maker in the country should design and political leaders and masses should support the policies for zero waste programs. i.e. there must be laws for all stakeholders in the country in this regard. Food wastage need to be approved as crime in any country.
There must be awareness programs at school and curriculam should be installed at school in this regard. Activities must be executed at schools to promote food sharing and zero wastage.
I will make it habbit that left overs of food must not be in the dustbin. I will discourage the food storage. Donations and sharing food must be encouraged massively in order to achieve zero hunger programs. Promote the kitchen garden and organic food to support healthy food.
You say food waste should be "approved as a crime in any country". What do you think the legal consequence should be for wasting food? Would the consequence change depending on the situation? How? I'm really interested to hear more about your idea!
When there be laws defining boundaries to respect and value food definitely we'll have positive consequence.
There is wastage of food not only at consumer's end but through supply chain.
Laws must be designs on International level defining the boundaries of utilizing the reservoirs. i.e. water , fosil fuels and nuclear fuel. Then they are implemented through the parts of globe depending on the stituation availability of resource, demands and supply.
At community level this can be exercised by campaigns to share value meal and can be link with charity work door to door.
People will think twice before wasting food.
In restaurants service charges and taxes should be imposed to certain type of food which can't
be shelf for long time.
As for as individual level behavior count the most. There should be norms link to discourage food wastage at houshold level.
For me food wastage is serious crime if anyone's plate is empty in this world it is because mine is overfill.
Yes, I agree with you, and there should be a penalty, which is a fine or a financial violation of a large amount. Yes, I am sure that in this way the results will change for the better. You will ask me how? I will answer you. All that matters to people nowadays is money, so they will do anything to save money
A Study Says On Average, 40% of food produced was being disposed of. This means that 7.5 tons of food are discarded daily. In India, wasting a ton of wheat and rice would mean wasting 1,500 and 3,500 liters of water severally that goes into their production. On a global scale The associated economic, environmental, and social prices of this loss at around $1 trillion, $700 billion, and $900 billion p.a. severally.
Understanding the facts, how would I reduce food waste – Recycle with a better strategy like turning waste food into animal feeds and can support as an element supporting manufacturing sectors (Bio-Gas & Fertilizers) other importantly, serving mankind as part of feeding the poor who looks for food
Our Government and our society can also play a vital role in supporting waste food management, an innovative food waste treatment system is an opportunity for businesses looking to do their part for the environment by reducing food waste in landfill and creating renewable clean energy.
What I could do to reduce food waste
I will follow and insist my fellow humans follow “RRR” (Triple R Formula)
Reduce: Improve food storage and reduce wastage at home. Buy what you use, and use it all.
Reuse: If you don't eat everything you make, freeze it for later or use the leftovers as an ingredient in another meal.
Recycle: Recycle as much as possible.
The most important thing to avoid waste of food is to educate people about the significance of food for human beings. Moral education of people in this regards is very crucial. Government should ask schools, shops, restaurants and religious scholars to propegate the instructions about avoiding wastage of food . We should adopt good manners at homes to eat food so that food should not be wasted. It may increase the chances of availability of food for others
Food waste cannot be eliminated completely but it can be reduced. Some tips to reduce food waste are:
1. At Home:
* Buy and eat when there is a need.
* Don't overserve. This is one of the main reason for food wastage.
* Eat your food accordingly to the situation.
* Don't throw your leftovers. Leftover foods doesn't mean that they are spoilt foods.
* Manage to eat what you have.
2. At Restaurant:
* Store required foods in the refrigerator.
* Share the leftover food items to poor people, beggers, and road-side animals and even to charities.
* Avoid overbuying.
* Giving customers more options.
* Promote buffet system.
Government measures:
* The government has to introduce various schemes and should make the people participate actively in reducing the food waste.
* It should introduce schemes to remove poverty as poverty is the root cause for all evils related from finance to hunger.
* It has to save the food in refrigerated warehouses in order to help the people when there is a shortage of food during natural calamities or in emergency situation.
Every country has to do this to prevent food shortage and leftovers should be utilized.
According to the idiom' sharing is caring' we must not waste our food and extra food can be shared with your neighborhood or can be given to charities and every community has to contribute something against food waste.
I agree because the points are very good.we can actually share and preserve for the needy,eat when there is a need for it or when it's time to eat.i believe that with this tips provided we can eradicate food wastage.
first the food is being wasted in different countries rich people always have upper hand and they get all types of food on their tables and they left big amount of food as waste material and throw it in dust bin rather than giving it to needy so poor people have to eat food from dustbin to remove their starvation that causes many type of severe diseases in my view; the food being thrown in dust bin daily should be given to needy so that they can fulfill their needs at community level their should be centers which keep a check and balance in community so the food being wasted can be given to those who deserves
How do you think people might feel about eating food that otherwise would have gone in the dustbin? Who might think this is a good idea? Who might not like this idea?
the food in dustbin doesn't mean the food which is rotten or ruined it means the food which is wasted in large amount in hotels, restaurants, and homes and many places and which should be given to those who need
Every country or community has some norms which teach people to avoid wastage of food. The problem of food waste arises when the food is in abundance. People must be aware of good manners so that if food is available more than need then they should consume it according to their need and don't spoil the whole amount of food. In different ceremonies appropriate quantity of food should be served to the people and remaining food should distributed among the poor and needy people. Instead of throwing, we must not store unnecessary food items at home to be expired and wasted rather they should be given to the people who need them.
On government level there should be proper arrangements for storage of food items like grains, fruits and vegetables. Cold stores must be available for the fruits and vegetables. Government should assure the continuous supply of food to the people without any wastage. Individually we can share the extra food with our close people . We can make welfare organizations to collect the extra food items from the well off people and to distribute them among the needy people . Actually it's all a matter of sense and responsibility to avoid the wastage of food m
You say it's a matter of "responsibility" to avoid wasting food. Who is responsible?
Obviously everyone who has an extra amount of food available is responsible to avoid wastage of food. As an individual he should store the excessive food otherwise if he can't store it then he must sell or give it to others without cost.
Similarly it is the responsibility of those countries who are producing food items in excess than their needs they should provide food to the other food demanding countries on low cost .
UNO , IMF, World Bank, World Trade Organizations and all Other global institutions should take the responsibility of easy import export of food and its distribution among needy nations and people
I think food is mostly wasted in restaurants and they are also the ones who can take part to reduce food wastage. All the leftovers of the whole day are wasted. These leftovers can feed hundreds of people. There should be a proper food preservation campaign in which all the customers are convinced to only buy the portions they can eat and the leftovers should be packed properly and hygienically and should be distributed honestly among the deserving .
This is a good area of food waste to target, and some great ideas here. Can you say more on how a food preservation campaign would work to get leftovers to those that need it? Your point about getting customers to only buy the portions they can eat got me thinking, what innovations could be introduced in the way customers order food at restaurants that could enable less waste on the plate?
In my opinion food waste is literally like a curse which couldn't be eliminated from our society until we do something for it
Because we all know how and where is food wasted but the thing should be done is to take step against it
For example in my society, in my area people waste so much food especially in marriages and parties
They just fill their plate up to end but at the end don't finish it
I could give these people awareness of the imp. Of food that their are many people in area who go to bed hungrily every day
Except of wasting this food they should at least give this food to poor and starving people
Also their are many ways to arise awareness of the importance of food and convince such type of people not to waste food
I belongs to Pakistan. We can reduce food wastage in our country by training our students and children about the awareness of food shortage. The other reason is that it is not our habbit to save food.The person who is rich buy more food and the food is waste .On the festivals many food is waste. It should be controlled.We should not waste our food.
Good points phenomenal_lion, you say that food waste should be 'controlled', can you suggest a way you or a country could do this?
I'm interested in what you've said about food wastage during Festivals. Can you give more detail about this? Do other Topical Talkers see more food wasted during holidays or celebrations as well?
Yes they see but don't think
In our school, many people complain that the school food is dry, over spiced or hard. Therefore, they try and throw the food away so that they won't have to eat it. But this can have some side effects. If they do not eat any of their lunch, they could be starving until they get home (which could result in drowsiness or headaches). Since we have pudding after we have eaten our main meal, pupils can throw away their lunch and only eat ice cream, or whatever desert they choose. This can be very unhealthy for them.
To better the situation, the school cooks could try and improve the quality of the lunches and see if the pupils like it. If they do, they can continue using that recipe. Of course, the pupils cannot have the same meal every day, so the cooks could experiment with different foods.
To add on, they could make an assigned day for any one dish. For example, in our school, we have a fish fingers day on Friday. This means that the cooks would always bake fish fingers on Friday so that the children will have something to look forward to.
I've awarded you a star as you given reasons for food waste and offered solutions.
Might it be quite difficult to make meals that everyone enjoys? People can have different tastes after all.
First, in my country Pakistan, I am not glad to say that there is a lot of food is wasted. It is one of the basic reasons of food shortage. We must develop awareness to the people about wasting of food varies with its shortage. We must build storage capacitors to store the extra food. In developing countries, food is produced excessively but due to less population, it is not utilized and it is wasted. Also, in the festivals, it is a trend to prepare excess food , as a result it becomes a waste product. And it is thrown away. We must overcome these circumstances so that we can reduce the global food crisis!!
Food waste is a massive problem overall the world. Food waste when disposed of in landfills produces harmful greenhouse gases such as methane and carbon dioxide, contiributing to global warming and climate change. In the events, we waste too much food which can fulfill the hunger of many people. We must help the poor and buy food as we need. Government should take a proper action about food waste problem
Food waste occurs for a variety of reasons including uneaten foods that is thrown out at homes , shop and restaurants. Nearly 1.3 billion tons of food is wasted in a year. For every minute nearly 1000 tons of food is wasted. How can we reduce food waste ? First thing , save and eat left overs it is one of the best way to reduce food waste . Pickling ,Drying , Canning , Fermenting , Freezing and Curing are all methods to reduce food waste . one of the best way to reduce food waste is when we are preparing food excess, we can share the food to the people who are not able to get the food easily .
Each and every individual can take a great part in reducing the hunger in the world by only taking the food of their need.
In my opinion, one of the most important reasons of food wastage is that people aren't aware of that their leftovers can make the lives of many who hardly gets one time food in the day.
To reduce the food wastage, I would suggest that there should be proper courses in the schools for the children that aware them from where the food in their plates come from and how many people are involved in bringing the food to their plates and how long does it take to reach them. If they are aware of these aspects they should become more conscious about it. Moreover, Mothers should teach their children not to waste the food from the young age.
The Governments should take notice about the food wastages in their country. There should be proper laws to punish the people who waste food.
The developing countries like USA,UK and China can play an important role in reducing the food wastage.These countries have better resources to produce enough food that can be given to the countries like Somalia, Ethopia and many more whose about 50% of the population are undernourished.
The leftovers of the people should be properly packed and should be distribute among the needy honestly.
There is a startup named "Rizq" in Pakistan which takes the leftover from the events like weddings and distribute among swerving . Such more startups are needed to reduce food wastage.
This can help the world to overcome food crisis.
In my opinion, in order to conquer this food waste it will have to start from the base of any country which is the families and here the elders in the family advise the other members on the dangerous possible outcomes of food waste , teaching them on how to manage the least available food in order for it to be enough for all family members in that way as they associate with the members in their different communities they can also be able to campaign against food waste.Remember in these different communities so are schools included therefore if the teachers employed have knowledge on how to avoid food waste, they can impart the same knowledge in the students. And on the side of the government it can control this by setting strict policies and guidelines for the people against food waste as well as also putting up different television or even radio programmes advocating for enough but not excess food for each person and for the shops they can just pot up posters on their doors against food waste.
Most of the food that goes to waste is due to expiration.
Food should be distributed by privately owned business before expiration and governments should encourage the policy through tax exemptions and tax cuts to business because wasted food is dumped in landfills that causes land pollution and give out greenhouse gases.
Personally we can reduce food wastage by saving leftovers for later because most food can last longer and shouldn't be dumped.
I agree with my comrade above. most foods are stored for a long period and when the end up not being purchased the expire and go to waste. so I feel that when people make products the should sell the ones that are due to expire early instead of storing them and allowing them to go to waste
In my community, in order to reduce food wastage i would first of all lead campaigns against food wastage to create awareness in people about the dangers of food wastage like leading to food insecurity. I would then make posters and post them in different places, some will be advising shops to avoid throwing of expired food and instead use it to feed animals of further more donate them to orphanages if their expiry dates are coming near in order to prevent food wastage. Other posters could be addressed to schools and families arguing them to buy and cook food that is just enough for them, incase of left overs, they can be kept and eaten later instead of just throwing. Others would be encouraging others to share their excess food with those that don't have enough like street children. This way food waste would reduce in my area.
Food waste cannot be eliminated completely but it can be reduced. Some tips to reduce food waste are:
1. At Home:
* Buy and eat when there is a need.
* Don't overserve. This is one of the main reason for food wastage.
* Eat your food accordingly to the situation.
* Don't throw your leftovers. Leftover foods doesn't mean that they are spoilt foods.
* Manage to eat what you have.
2. At Restaurant:
* Store required foods in the refrigerator.
* Share the leftover food items to poor people, beggers, and road-side animals and even to charities.
* Avoid overbuying.
* Giving customers more options.
* Promote buffet system.
I would educate the uneducated on the dangers of wasting food like you may have some left overs and instead of keeping them for the mere future to eat and in this way you won't have to spend any coin, If i were among the government members I would place fines on people who waste food and in this way food waste would be limited.
Food waste is not only the wastage of food but it also waste many natural resources and artificial resources which are obviously obtain from natural resources
" Natural resources"
Natural resources are wasted in huge when we waste food
Such as water ,seed ,soil , diesel ( used in tracters) etc
And most important it waste the hard working of farmers
" Artificial resources"
Such as fertilizers , insectides ,pestides, etc
"""" SOLUTION """"
1 Awareness among people especially rich people sorry to say who even dont have sense that what are they wasting and how important is that for poor
2 provide this food to needy
( Only clean and hygienic)
3 only cook dishes which are of desire
4 restaurants should not waste food instead give it to needy
5 during buffet system three to four dishes should be aside with agreement and provide it to needy one
Food waste is a major problem in our world today and there is a huge need for an effort to reduce the wastage of food in society and promote the need to save and respect food in the young generation.
Every day tons of food is wasted by hotels, restaurants, households, etc. because of the careless people who exploit the fortune of having food to eat.
I think that there can be food banks arranged by the government where the food that is wasted can be given to needy people. There can be awareness camps arranged by schools and organizations to promote the need to stop the wastage of food by the young generation. Most importantly, there is a strict need for people to learn to take enough food to make them full and not stuff their plates and then waste food. Everyone should learn to respect the fortune of getting food and remember that there is someone just like them who may be sleeping hungry.
I think reducing food waste is one of the most significant ideas which plays a great role in decreasing the impact of the global food crisis. I have several suggestions about reducing the food waste. In terms of restaurants, governments should monitor them by putting some cameras in those places and if any person demands food and didn't eat it , he should pay a fine. The collected money should go to needy people.
In terms of homes, governments can set up a website which shows the place of poor people in each area so the near citizens can delivere their over food to the people who need it instead of throwing it a way. In addition, the government can held a competition to encourage people to adopt some needy families ,then reward the most effective people in a ceremony. Personally, l would set up a Facebook page to raise my colleagues' awareness about being aware when we cook food to get what we can consume only with out wasting food. Also, I would encourage my friends to held a campaign for collecting the leftovers from restaurants and give to hungry people in my community .
Great ideas interesting_artist! A lot of your suggestions depend on the charity and generosity of others, how do you think wealthier people can help people in poverty to become more self-sufficient, so eventually they don't need any donations of food?
According to my opinion, which is the opinion of the majority, that developed countries should abandon their selfishness and know the bad condition of everyone in terms of nutrition, as there is plenty of food and enough for millions of people. So, stores should not throw excess food and give it to the needy, and governments should provide food appropriately for families, and the school should give its students necessary food for them and families. The rich should not throw excess food in the garbage and give it to the needy and raise their children to be humble with the poor and share food with them, and the state must establish a law calling for sharing food.
You make interesting points, dependable_region. One question, though: you say "the state must establish a law calling for sharing food". Wouldn't that be difficult to define? What happens if you have exactly enough to feed your family, but the law says you must share it? Yes many people have more than they need but legislating how to distribute food or other resources can be very tricky, and there are many dangers of infringing individual liberties.
I agree because it really reflects the situation we are going through.
I agree because very cool expression.
I suggest the government should start from the primary level by inculcating it into school activities both in secondary level and university level where they will be taught the dangers,causes, benefits e.t.c of food wastage and through this means the level of food wastage will be reduced and tackled with. It is possible that as students are taught in school they will also get their parents to notice about the dangers,causes, benefits of food wastage.
Alot of countries have these fancy restaurants and sweet shops that always cook and serve fresh meals ,but at the end of the day throws all what's left in the garbage .
Instead of doing that they can donate them . The amount of food they threw over the years could have solved the world's hunger issue.
But at school the canteens food can rotten u know ? without it being eaten by anyone .
Instead of throwing the food , before it rottend donate it , other people can really use the food that's left.
Alot of families would cook double the amount of food they eat and then most of it gets thrown away . Instead of doing that cook less food that the family can finish in a day ,less food will be wasted then.
Alot of shops leave their food to expire then they throw it , but why won't they give the food away before it expires if no one is going to buy it?
Food wasting is what caused hunger among countries, every uneducated should be educated about that , and that people not eating can cause them lack of important body liquids that can cause alot of mental and physical issues.
Reduction of Food wastage can be occur when we realize that how much we waste food on whatever places where we eat food, we must make a food or diet plan. Therefore, the issue of food crisis can be controlled. Here thing of think is that what we do that the problem of food wasting can be controlled.
1: Food crisis is prevailing due to less opportunities of jobs, Government should be observe about this.
2: After the flood in Pakistan 90% wheat is ruined.
3: Due to the costly prices of food, a common man cannot afford meal for him & his family , Perhaps it is the reason of food crisis.
☆ NEVER WASTE FOOD BECAUSE MANY PEOPLE DYING FOR IT
The main reasons for food wastage are lack of awareness in people,luxurious life style,people do not have proper training of storing food and do not have proper storage facilities,food is also wasted on celebrations and on festivals in a big proprtion .
Food Waste happens at several levels. Right from production, to process to distribution and to the end consumer's consumption. I would like to address the issue that could be done easily to reduce food consumption wastage.
At restaurants, having a special counter for the leftovers, neatly packed, would help those who are deprived of food to consume. Also, the restaurants should levy an extra charge for those who waste food. And those eat completely in table could be given some discounts.
At home, cooking the right quantity of food for the number of people at home would be a big help to reduce food wastage. For e.g., In our family it is one menu for one day for all. My mom doesn't like to me to say that I wouldn't eat this, because I don't like it. At our home, what's on plate should be emptied. The concept of one menu for one person in the family should not be encouraged. It is the collective social responsibility for all of us to ensure that we cherish and eat what we get.
At our home, our grandmother plans and organizes the kitchen so well that every item that is required would be sufficient but not abundant.
At schools, the schools should insist on no food wastage. Also, the parents should be advised not to dump too much of food to eat for the kids at school. The lunch box should be balanced and just the right portion so that the kid doesn't waste at school.
The school canteens should also have a specific menu designed for the day. A large spread would always lead to wastage as everyone would be tempted to taste variety of food items at the same time.
India is also known for its large weddings. Spending lavishly on a huge spread for the wedding dinner and lunch is part of several family weddings. Some awareness has set in now among the young generations that during weddings, collectively they decide to have some niche menu with limited portions so that no one wastes food.
At wedding halls, if there is excess food, arrangements could be done to neatly pack the excess food and that be distributed to several homeless people, orphanages and old age homes. If this is done in a pre-planned way, we would not only be making our people who are attending the wedding happy with a delicious food and menu but also many more out there, who are starving for good food.
Every citizen should equally take the responsibility to reduce the food wastage.
Is there anything that should happen on a government level?
Yes when the government take some steps to set up insect farming it also makes the country to export the product produced
We stay familiar with the amount of food wastage in social gatherings. It rises as an
amusement how we cannot save that food which is thrown. Explainable why the maids would ask me to finish all bits of my food because they value it, so should we. The food unused by caterers ends up as food waste. Food wastage in these gatherings should be considered an authoritarian offence. NGOs often play an important role in providing resources to those who cannot avail them themselves. Inaugurating more NGOs and making it mandatory for caterers to partner with them and donate their fresh food would help reduce wastage and feed a lot more. Our governments should also keep a check on fair distribution. Tonnes of wheat and grain rot in factories during storage. Either we should introduce more effective storage methods or improve our distribution facilities.
In my family, many follow this typical mindset when guests come over that the food we order can for once be more than the amount we need but it shouldn’t be less. And I am against this. If we order less, food can be ordered again, but why waste it? I try to encourage this more. Whenever my friends come over or we are ordering something within our family, I always calculate and ask everybody how many pieces of something they would eat and order wisely.
We all by now should know our diet and take food accordingly. I remind my younger siblings how much they eat regularly and they should not take more than that.
Friends, do you feel it is possible for the government to engage in this?
We donot give value to food therefore it gradually decrease. We waste a lot of food in marriage functions and other gatherings. Instead of giving it to needy people, we throw it. There are many reasons of waste food. Some of there are; =Lack of awareness among people =Lack of training of people =Lack of habit to save food =Resources, more food buy, then it waste =In festivals cultures, more food buy, then it waste =Storage capacity SOLLUTION= By giving awareness to people, by making the habit to save food and in festivals necessary food is bought, we can overcome this problem
In my opinion food waste is literally like a curse which couldn't be eliminated from our society until we do something for it
Because we all know how and where is food wasted but the thing should be done is to take step against it
For example in my society, in my area people waste so much food especially in marriages and parties
They just fill their plate up to end but at the end don't finish it
I could give these people awareness of the imp. Of food that their are many people in area who go to bed hungrily every day
Except of wasting this food they should at least give this food to poor and starving people
Also their are many ways to arise awareness of the importance of food and convince such type of people not to waste food
l'm so glad l was taught not to waste food. My father always say that the food is fruit of the labors of farmers so we should appreciate their labor and also be reminded that we are blessed with a meal unlike those who cannot get food on their plate. l wish my friends could also see that when they waste their food.
My parent's since I was child have always taught me to never waste food and made sure that my plate was always empty. They taught me to only take smell portion at first as you can always get more later than haveing left in plate only to throw it away. They also showed me how some less fortunate people have to life throughout the day without food while some ignorantly waste it. That completly changed me as a person.
I think a big part of the problem is that shops buy way more food than they can sell in the first place. I'm actually hoping for a future where they only take in what they're confiden they can sell, and customers have to plan around that. If you know the supermarket gets new milk, for example, on certain days, go buy milk around those days. Better than the shops having to throw vast quantities of food away.
I belong from Pakistan. In my opinion the causes of food waste are:
•Awareness:
In my opinion there is no awareness about food in the world. People don't know that food waste have negative impact on society. To reduce food waste, the government should open the awareness institutions to reduce food waste.
•Training:
Training play an important role to reduce food waste. Teachers, parents and other institutions should train the children to reduce food waste.
•Resources:
Some people do not have resources to save food, so they waste it and throw in the garbage. Some countries do not have resources to trade with other countries, it also causes the food waste.
•Festivals and Cultures:
The lot of food are waste in festivals and cultures. The 400 tones of food which is wastes from festivals each year.
•Storage facilities:
Some countries have not storage facilities which causes the food waste. They don't stores the food( fruits and vegetables) which may cause the rot.
I can reduce food wastage by eating food without wasting food and I am a child who does not eat food if I don't like but after reading these comments I am feeling bad for each and every grain I wasted without eating and I knew that many countries are suffering because of food crisis and food wastage can be avoided by ;
★Eat whatever you have :
Cause many peoples are not having a hand of food so if you waste food you are not only wasting food but also affecting somebody's life on this earth .
★Food wastage in restaurants :
Many developed countries in the world are having excessive amount of food and they are wasting them in restaurants. They are not offering it to poor people in the streets
★Food :
The food you are eating in your plate is not just a food but also the hardwork of many peoples where you're mom will be preparing it in early morning ,your father who is working hard for day and night to give you a good food and finally the farmers who are ploughing the ground for day and night ,waiting days and months for the seeds to grow and finally the one spoon of food you eat these much stories behind it .
SO DO NOT WASTE FOOD .
As a citizen of one of the most populous countries, I have always wondered if there is enough resource to feed and satisfy the hunger of whole population. Many statistical studies put forth very crucial reports on earth’s capacity to feed humanity. It results obvious problem of famine itself the shortage of food is also likely to cause conflicts, mass migration and even war likely to fight over the access of food and water resources. Even after uncountable number of campaigns and awareness program about the importance of food as a potential resource to sustain humanity, still 3, 00,000tons of food is wasted every day.
What could we possibly do?
“It is each and every individual’s responsibility to work for subsistence their species”.
Not throwing away food just because they are leftovers, buying food according to their food intake capacity, sharing the food with people in need, managing food waste can happen only when every human disposes his greed of wanting everything to himself.
Be it home, school, society or government, it only acts as a medium to instill the importance of saving food resources.
The fact that wasting food is a concern, we are destroying the farmlands which doubles the effect.
Either we avoid food wastage or find the way to create food virtually to sustain ourselves.
'The realistic solution can only occur if people drift their minds to cause of future welfare'.
I think food waste can be reduced with the following :Buy only wath l need . I don't throw anything . Eat smaller portions of food at home or use it to make a different dish . Some food waste may be inevitable so the Ministry of Agriculture can collect excess food from the know places that it specifies for the citizens that use it in the manufacture of organic fertilizer . Surplus food can be donated to poor families next you.
At a first, in our society there is a lot of waste of food, maybe someone else needs it, there are many ways to reduce food waste, here are some of these ways:
1- Identify the people responsible for reducing food waste.
2- Recycle what can be recycled from food.
3- Use less food.
4- Make sure to buy only the food you need.
Instead of throwing it in the trash and donating it, institutions can contribute to reducing food waste by making awareness flyers about it. Stores can also donate some food to people in need. As for schools, teachers can educate students not to throw away leftovers and give it to the poor. Why not start We keep food wisely and use less food, because reducing food waste reduces poverty and hunger and combats climate change.
The possibility of reducing food waste is the responsibility of the entire community, by cooperating together according to a system that is easy for everyone, and he who has more food, wraps it in a beautiful way and sends it to his neighbor in need, and so on. We do not want to say that we reduce our food and cook only as needed; On the contrary, we work more in order to give to the needy or to poor neighbors and orphans. We must feel for others because, as our Noble Messenger Muhammad (may God bless him and grant him peace) said, we are like one body. And in restaurants, the same system is also wider To pack excess food and serve it to workers in a factory or company. This increases the bonds between the members of the community, and there is no food wasted or wasted.
One of things l found to have a gigantic impact is making shopping lists and sticking to them . Usually , my dad would do the groceries by memory , but we'd always end up with a good few products at the end of the week that were spoiled . After he had travelled and couldn't go into public places me and my mom took that over and we started making lists because we needed the crutch as to not forget anything . Now, we throw out a bit of rapidly aging fruit(think strawberries and the like )... and that's about it . Maybe the odd bit of meat that went off before its date ,but that is not something we have much influence over.
Sharing your experience is great way to give an example for your reasoning!
Food is a blessing, but the problem of food waste has spread, and I have solutions to this crisis /
The family / The family should cook no more than they need
School / Students may be encouraged with flyers to conserve food
The government can hold competitions to reduce food waste, as each family places a box in front of its house containing food that is surplus to its needs so that they can transfer these boxes for distributions to the poor
These are ways to reduce food waste
I like your solution idea about rewards for reduced food waste!
Well then, we have to reduce food waste. How ? Well I will tell you how.
First, when we go to restaurants, we must order an amount of food that satiates us. We should not ask for more because we will not be able to complete the food, so there is an amount of food left on the plate. We will throw it away, and this is wrong. Therefore, we must ask for the amount of our saturation, not more. This also belongs to the government, stores, families and schools. Stores must donate food that people do not buy and whose validity is close to expiring. Before it expires, stores must donate it to the poor and the government as well. Schools must put a sufficient amount of food for the student, so he does not like to increase the food because it will harm the health of the student as well. Also, the mother at home must cook enough food for two days so that household expenses do not exceed food every day. It is better to cook food for two days
In my opinion I think the main reason of food crises is wasting food from people in all places even in restaurants, houses, .....etc
And also don't forget the international policy which has the big hand and responsible for this crise to control the destiny of the people especially in the undeveloped countries .
I hope from all who read this comments to begin from himself to reduce wasting food to solve global food crises.
Can you explain the international policy you mention? How does this contribute to the crisis?
If there is a justice in food distribution or helping occupied countries to be free in using their sources
As a Muslim Country,wwe shouldn't waste food. Our relation and culture prevent us from wasteing food,so,we can launash campaign to increase people's awernees a bout the important of not wasting food as a social and religious value .
It's important reduce the waste of food in Our country by designing and supporting the polices reducing waste programs .i.e. there must be laws for all stakeholders in the country and wastage must be entitled as a crime in any country .
There must be awareness programs, curricula,and religious splashes should be recommended, and rules designed a bout food sharing and zero wasteg
I personally feel that 30%of the food is just in the garbage and that’s unfortunate, but this is because sometimes the food that we buy is expired , so the solution for this is that when the factories produce food it has to be in a limited amount so it can have time to finish from the store before its expired date ends and also people’s job around the world is to buy the amount of food that is needed so like that the food will not have time to get expired so I think that this is a really important way to save the wasting of food around the world , this problem is going to be for the seller and the buyer in the same time because like that the buyer’s money is wasted on expired food and it’s a wasting problem for the seller too because like that the food that the seller sales is useless .
How easy do you think it is to predict how much food is needed and who will buy it?
Be careful not to make up statistics based on your opinion!
Well it’s not easy but I’m talking about the lots of the food that is produced and most of the time it isn’t used so I’m saying that the solution in my opinion is to buy a limited amount of food that is needed so we can have time to eat it instead of throwing it.
Why is food important?
Food and water are only the two essential things that our body needs for survival. Healthy foods keeps us healthy, strong, fit and fine.
How does food get wasted?
The food that we all eat in home get wasted by various ways. Such as:-
~Sometimes a person or other couldn’t finish their food. Then that left over food goes in fridge or it gets thrown or fed to animals.
How can we prevent the food waste?
We can simply minimize or prevent the food wastes at home by:-
~ Just make sure that the food which is cooked is enough for the rest of the family.
~Do not cook food which is more than enough.
Do not buy things which is enough for a month or so on, because some fruits might rot or some other items such as bread and flour might get expired.
~Never leave the food uncovered.
At a restaurant:-
~Do not throw the waste food but instead just feed them to the hungry beggars.
As for the government:-
~The government could collect the waste food and the food can still be eatable, then feed then between the hungry beggars.
~If the food is no longer eatable, then our government could distribute then between farmers because they could use the waste food as a compost for the plants.
~Government could also provide a good land for farmers for agriculture.
Can you give more detail about why governments should provide more farming land?
Actually
Now days in this morden world, agriculture is slowly being disappeared .
If the government provides more farming land to the farmers, then the agriculture product will increase in the country along with some benefits:-
- Starving won't creat a problem.
- We won't need to import our basic
agriculture needs such as rice.
- Less import also means the growth
of the country.
And there are many many more farming or agriculture benefits for us and the world.
Currently, in my school, we have had a lot of food waste, however, we are trying to put a stop to this. If you eat all your food, the teachers will give you a reward like a sticker to encourage both that person, and their peers.
I think that in order to reduce food waste, not just one person needs to help, but many people have to take part in eating all that is on their plate.
I think it would be a good idea for restaurants to let you take all you want , but if you cannot eat it all, then you have to pay for what you did not eat. Whilst this could seem harsh, it means that you only eat what you need because if you leave food on your plate, then no one else can eat it, so it will have to be disposed of.
I think that shops probably have a lot of food waste: They may put on prices that could be to expensive for some people because of the cost of living crisis. I think shops should price their items at a lesser cost. While this may seem like a loss, it may make their shop more popular, so they could potentially get more money.
Might people who can afford it just take too much food and pay for the waste?
True, but still, when you go out for food, you don't want to find out that you have to pay more than you expected at the end-it is always hard to part with money that you just earned.
Our society faces several problems, one of which is food waste, which occurs through buying more than what is required,ordering a large meal in a restaurant,not being able to finish it,and throwing leftovers into waste.
This problem can be solved with the help of the government, families and schools by giving leftovers to the needy or as natural fertilizers, preparing a new meal from it,or storing food at an appropriate temperature,and thus we have solved the problem of food waste
Well!
Food wastage is a also a cause of food shortage. Many peoples who have access to eat and buy alot of food let their food in dustbins after eating enough .
Why can't they just give this food to needy and poor?
Around 36 million tons of food is wasting in hotels, houses,parties etc
While the peoples don't have access to buy food let theirs elves hungry!
Why?
Because they can't even buy food for themselves as the prices of food are increasing and reaching Highs
Food waste is a not only a pain to those who cant afford food but also a factor that leads to the increase in waste as food makes 12% of trash according to world bank.
1.Left overs that weren't sold by restaurant can be served to homeless people in the area.
2.Homes should use refrigerators for foods that can be kept and eaten later.
3.Schools can give out leftover food to serve as feed for animals on livestock farms.
These are great ideas to help save food. Do you think there's anything that governments can do to help?