Food Wastage

The act of preparing food is a love language to ourselves and others we care about and we believe that food prepared with love often creates our most cherished memories.

Food wastage refers to the act of discarding or throwing away food that is still safe and nutritious for human consumption. This can happen at any point in the food supply chain, from production and processing to distribution and consumption. Food wastage can occur due to various reasons, such as overproduction, spoilage, expiration, poor storage, and consumer behavior.

The wastage of food starts right from its production to the final consumption. While storing the grown crop, lots of food wastes because of improper storage. Purchasing more than the needed food in restaurants and hotels is also a major reason for food wastage. Sometimes, there is food prepared more than needed in our houses, which brings the wastage of lots of food. The food, prepared in the marriages and other functions, also causes food wastage in a huge amount.

Food wastage is a significant global issue, with about one-third of all food produced in the world being wasted or lost each year. In a world where millions of people do not have food to eat properly, what story tells the destruction of such grains?

On the one hand, the remaining food of the night is thrown away daily as stale, on the other hand there are some people who do not eat even for a while and are starving. It is the story of almost every developed and developing country. The common man is troubled by inflation, the prices of food items are skyrocketing, but the government is not sure why the government does not release it in the open market when there is large stock of food grains. Even though rats eat grains in warehouses, grains keep moist and rot in water. This not only represents a significant economic loss but also has environmental and social impacts, such as contributing to greenhouse gas emissions, water waste, and food insecurity.

A report has revealed that with increasing wealth, people are becoming more insensitive to food. Obviously, water and food are two of man’s basic needs and if a person is not sensitive to his downfall, he is forced to suffer the consequences. According to a report by the World Food Organization, 20 thousand children are forced to go hungry every day worldwide, when in reality this number is far more.

If we look at this figure in the context of India, we are ranked 67 in the World Hunger Index and it is a shame that every fourth person in India is forced to sleep with hunger. Of course, looking at the data many times is a cause for concern, but we are not ready to let go of our carelessness.

According to a report by the Indian Institute of Public Administration, 23 million pulses, 120 million tonnes of fruits and 21 million tonnes of vegetables per year in India suffer losses due to faults in the distribution system.

Environmental impact of food wastage in India

Some of the environmental impacts of food waste in India are:

1. Landfills: The most common method of disposing of food waste in India is through landfills. However, as the amount of waste increases, so does the demand for landfills. This leads to an increase in the number of landfills, which in turn causes environmental problems such as soil and water pollution, methane emissions, and greenhouse gas emissions.

2. Water usage: Agriculture is the largest consumer of water in India, and when food is wasted, it means that the water used to produce it is also wasted. This puts pressure on India's already scarce water resources.

3. Greenhouse gas emissions: When food is wasted, it decomposes and produces methane, a potent greenhouse gas. In India, the decomposition of food waste in landfills is responsible for approximately 5% of the country's total greenhouse gas emissions.

4. Deforestation: Agriculture is one of the leading causes of deforestation in India. When food is wasted, more land is needed to produce the same amount of food, leading to deforestation.

5. Energy usage: The production, transportation, and storage of food all require energy, and when food is wasted, this energy is also wasted.

To address the environmental impacts of food waste in India, it is essential to implement policies and practices that reduce food waste at all stages of the food supply chain, from production to consumption. This can include promoting sustainable agricultural practices, improving food storage and transportation, reducing food packaging waste, and increasing public awareness about the importance of reducing food waste.

Ways to reduce food wastage 

The biggest question is how can we reduce ‘food waste’ on a personal level? The affluent class considers wasting food as its birthright, on the other hand, the people of the country are suffering from starvation. Since India is a country where festivals, weddings keep going on and huge crowds gather on these occasions, it is obvious that food is also wasted by these crowds. It is not only about a day or a house, but gradually this bad habit has become a part of people’s life.

Here are some suggested ways to reduce food wastage:

1. Smart shopping

Plan the entire meal of the week or month in advance and shop accordingly. Do not overdo anything. Make your menu as planned, otherwise the chances of wastage increase. For example, perhaps we buy cheese and it is kept in the fridge for several days. Then it will spoil and we will throw it away. It is better that we buy only those things which are needed. While going to the market, make sure to check the fridge and store room, what are the goods and what are the ends of the house.

2. No food in the fridge

Many times we forget to keep food items in the fridge because it is not visible to us. Such things go bad. To prevent this waste, it is important that we should clean our fridge every three-four days. Whatever is placed in it will be clearly seen and we will complete it according to priority.

3. Serve as required

Serve as much as you can. Often, we throw leftover food into the garbage, after serving it excessively. Avoid doing this. It is often a waste of food to feed children, also avoid it.

What should be the way forward?

In the name of serving more and more dishes at weddings, wastage has become a tradition that is an undesirable act. People are pouring money on weddings like water, resulting in a greater increase in social spending on poor families. This tradition should be stopped. Even in homes, housewives should take care of this and be alert to cook food items as per the requirement of family members.

Religious leaders and voluntary organizations should also take initiative in this direction. Children should have the feeling from the beginning that they take as much food in the plate as they feel hungry. The contribution of religion, philosophy, thought and tradition can also create a new environment in this change process.

The conclusion

In Indian culture, food has been given the status of a god but in the race of modernity we have become so blind that leaving food in the plate is considered fashionable. The government should also consider limiting the number of guests served at weddings as well as the number of dishes served.