UNEP releases “Food Waste Index Report 2021”

The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) releases the Food Waste Index Report 2021.

About Food Waste Index Report, 2021:

• Aim: The Report aims at supporting the goals of SDG 12.3. It does so by presenting the most comprehensive food waste data collection and analysis.
  • SDG Target 12.3: It aims to halve global food waste at the retail and consumer levels and reduce food losses, including post-harvest losses, along supply chains by 2030.

Key Findings of the report:

1. Food Waste: An estimated 17% (931 million tonnes) of total global food production was wasted in 2019. Among them, 61% of the global waste came from households, 26% from food service and 13% from retail.
2. Food Wastes across income groups: Household per capita food waste generation is broadly similar across country income groups. It suggests that action on food waste is equally relevant in high, upper‐middle and lower-middle-income countries.
3. Hunger Across the World: In 2019, some 690 million people were impacted by hunger and three billion were unable to afford a healthy diet.

Impact of Food Waste:

• Environment Impact: Around 8-10% of global greenhouse gas emissions are associated with food that is not consumed.
• Economic Impact: Food loss and waste cause about $940 billion per year in economic losses.

Suggestions for Reducing Food Waste:

• Include Food Waste in NDC’s: None of the Nationally Determined Contributions(NDCs) to the Paris Agreement mention food waste and only 11 countries mentions food loss. Hence, countries can raise climate ambition by including food systems in their NDCs.

About Food Systems Summit:

• UN Secretary-General will convene the Food Systems Summit in 2021. It is part of the Decade of Action to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030.
• Purpose: The Summit will launch bold new actions to deliver progress on all 17 SDGs. Each of the actions relies to some degree on healthier, more sustainable, and equitable food systems.

Source: Down To Earth

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