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A Third of the Planet’s Food Goes to Waste — Here’s What We Throw Out the Most

  • November 09, 2016

From farm to table to local garbage dumps, food today is being wasted in ever-growing quantities. Shockingly, a full third of this planet’s food is going to waste — enough to feed 2 billion people, Business Insider reports.

The waste is occurring for a variety of disturbing reasons, including in the form of unpicked “ugly” produce that is left to rot right in farmers’ fields, the business magazine lamented. This adds to a recent survey that showed that Americans are throwing some foods away simply because of an expiration date, and they believe that eating it could cause food poisoning.

Expiration dates are controversial, but even more disconcerting is that so many people are buying processed foods that come with labels, as opposed to opting for fresh, organic, raw vegetables and organically raised meats. Sadly, when Americans do choose fresh foods, they often end up throwing it away anyway, because they don’t consume it once they buy it.

The issue of food waste attracted national attention in September 2015, when the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency called for a 50 percent reduction in food waste by 2030. They gave America 15 years to do this — while Denmark has already reduced its food waste by 25 percent in five.

If we want to speed it up here, we can do it in numerous ways, including applying compost to farmland to trap carbon dioxide in the ground, making an effort to eat the fresh foods we buy, opting for “ugly” fruits and vegetables and planning our meals in advance.