FOOD WASTAGE
Love food hate waste........
Avoid throwing away good food and help preserve the environment and save money in the process.
If you remember your last restaurant visit and compare that with overall statistics of food wastage in India alone, you would want to go back and lick your plate clean – and maybe even the utensils, the food was served in. But, the lack of awareness around the issue and interrelated issues, such as malnutrition, poverty and food shortage, is minimal and hence a small contributor to the larger picture of food waste and the aforesaid issues. But, food waste alone incurs huge monetary losses to industries and mankind, in general.
Food waste primarily revolves around any form of food, raw or cooked, used or unused – discarded or intended so. Professional bodies and governments alike, further diversify the definitions to various categories and implications such as the kind of food waste, the form it is produced/generated by and materials and source of waste. The dramatic impact that food waste can have on a particular nation, in terms of economic and social perspectives, is enormous especially in larger countries like the USA, UK and India – depending on the population and food consumption.
Of the various countries trying to tackle the issues of food waste and their respective losses, Japan seems to be doing very well via the administrative system. Against India’s all-encompassing laws for food waste, Japan has various laws pertaining to the different causes of food wastage, such as Container & Packaging Recycling Law’, ‘Food Wastes Recycling Law’ and even a ‘Law on promoting Green Purchase’, enabling industries and agriculturists to look towards effective uses of resources and also join the eco drive – which needs more initiatives like these. Various scientists and environmentalists believe, stringent laws, effective administration and self responsibility are the more vital points which can be looked at for grass root changes to come about, especially in country like India, where the maximum food waste comes from the agricultural waste sector. A report submitted by Rabo India Finance, a private consultancy firm, in 2007 to the government of India estimates a whopping 58,000 crores worth of rupees are lost due to agricultural food waste, alone.
However, food waste can be tackled in more effective ways, with the help of various schematic and planned methods implemented by the governments and private firms simultaneously. Food waste, like other waste can be dumped but could also be used for various other purposes such as feeding animals or be biodegraded by various methods such as a composting and used for soil enrichment. Though a lot of the food waste caused due to the food processing can be difficult to reduce without affecting the quality of the finished product, certain incentives must be provided by the administrative bodies, to look to reduce this form of food waste. Also, a lot of food waste is created post harvest due to the lack of infrastructural facilities such as cold chain provisions, transportation and proper storage facilities. However, with a growth in the retail market and its demand, a lot of foreign companies have shown interest in agri-based and processed food products.
POOJA KURELE
M.SC 3RD SEM