“In a world of 7 billion people and set to grow to 9 billion by 2050, wasting food makes no sense- economically, environmentally, and ethically” said a Secretary General. There are over a billion people starving around the world and that is why I think wasting food is a global shame. As humans, food is a necessity and we must have it to survive starvation. Wasting food is wasting energy. In order to make food, we use energy and if all we do is throw it away, and then we are throwing away money. According to Discover Magazine, “Around 15 % of the energy used in the U.S. U.S. BTU of energy in 2007, or the equivalent of about 350 million barrels of oil.”
As we all know recycling paper and plastic is a way in which we currently save money and energy, why is it not the same with all of the uneaten food? The uneaten food is thrown away and not recycled into manure, chicken feed, or just feeding the homeless. We are throwing out an equivalent of over $160 billion worth of food each year. Also as food decays in the land fills it produces a methane gas, which is a greenhouse gas that is more damaging to the environment than carbon dioxide.
We do not realize that we are throwing away good edible food. We are so concerned with the expiration dates that are labeled on the food that we purchase. The purpose for expiration dates is to make us aware of the quality of the food that we purchase and not necessarily food safety. Therefore, we have adapted the attitude of “When in doubt throw it out”. Learning when food really goes bad and properly planning out our meals will help the reduction of the food that we throw away.
Food leftovers are a large component of the waste that we accumulate. This type of waste includes the uneaten food and scraps in our households, restaurants, school and industrial cafeterias. More wasted or tossed food are in landfills than any other solid waste product. Tons of food wastes are generated every year with only a very small percentage being diverted from the landfills. The food waste findings ironically come just as we are finding out that 1 in 5 individuals state that they did not have enough money to purchase food for their families or themselves within the past year.
The drought that we have experienced lately has taken an impact on the food prices will only increase next year. Therefore, it will make it even more difficult for people to provide food for their families. With the increase demand for food, the drought and the rising food cost, having a more efficient food origination is critical to our ever growing population.
There are benefits in reducing the amount of food waste that is being sent to the landfills, such as economic, environmental, and social. The economic benefit would be by reducing the amount of food waste that you and the businesses have will inquire fewer charges to dispose of it. By only buying food that will be eaten you are reducing your overall food cost. This will also reduce business energy and labor associated with disposing of unwanted or unusable food. Businesses can also receive a tax benefit by donating food to organizations that feed those in need. The environmental benefits would be the reduction of methane gas in landfills, and reduce the resources needed to produce the food that is grown. For example, water, fertilizers, and energy. The social benefit would be to donate to the people in need instead of donating to the landfills. By donating safe and healthy food to Food Banks and other organizations will help benefit us as a community.
We as a society are now recognizing that we dispose of a ridiculous amount of our food each year. We need to get more people to see that this is a problem and get them to start acting on it. They can help by finding solutions to reduce the amount of food waste. We can no longer continue nor afford to be a throw away society. This is only going to become more of an issue if we do not take action. Breaking away from our wasteful habits will require a lot of adjustment; however we all have the ability to reduce food waste. We need to put our perspectives in order and make food preservation a part of our everyday lives without wasting it and preserving it. As a society we have been pondering this, now its time that we take action. Its one of the easiest steps that we can take to improve our environment and make things better for those that follow.
Works Cited:
"A PAINLESS WAY TO ACHIEVE HUGE ENERGY SAVINGS: STOP WASTING FOOD." States News Service 2 Oct. 2010. Academic OneFile. Web. 10 Mar. 2013.
Colby Cosh. "Food banking as a growth industry." Alberta
"The food-waste debate could use a pinch of common sense." Maclean's 28 Jan. 2013: Academic OneFile. Web. 19 Mar. 2013.
Your first body paragraph was interesting, I never thought of recycling plastic and paper as the same as recycling the food that is good and will go to waste. I agree that more of our society today is becoming aware but i think more people need to see this video.
ReplyDeleteVery good paper, lots of information and opinions. America is a wasteful society. Most people could care less as long as they have what they need.
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