There is increasing awareness of why we all need to make changes if we are to address the issues of feeding the world without killing the planet. There is no silver bullet, but food waste seems a target that is “hiding in plain sight”.
Food waste is one of the biggest and most overlooked contributors to climate change. According to the United Nations, about a third of all food produced in the world is lost or wasted, amounting to 1.3 billion tonnes per year. This is enough to feed 2 billion people, more than twice the number of undernourished people in the world.
Food waste not only deprives millions of people of nutritious food, but also wastes the resources that go into producing it, such as land, water, energy, and labour. It also generates greenhouse gas emissions at every stage of the food supply chain, from farm to fork. If food waste were a country, it would be the third-largest emitter of carbon dioxide after China and the US, responsible for 8% of global emissions.
This is why I believe that reducing food waste is one of the most effective and urgent actions we can take to combat climate change and protect our environment. As a global entrepreneur and environmental advocate, I have seen first-hand the challenges and opportunities of making the food system more sustainable and resilient. I have also witnessed the devastating impacts of climate change and biodiversity loss on our planet and our communities.
The UK produces the largest amount of food waste in Europe, some 9.5 million tonnes every year, enough to feed 30 million people. Yet some 8 million in the UK live in food poverty. It estimated that 70% of the food waste is from households, 16% from manufacturers, 12% from hospitality, and 2% from retailers.
This data poses some huge questions about customer behaviour, why are we buying food to throw it away? However, I find the 16% waste from manufacturers obscene. This surely can be addressed. Furthermore, as manufacturers surely there must be steps that we can take to reduce the household waste figure.
Fifty years ago, my parents would shop once a month, buying dry and ambient items such as flour, sugar, potatoes and restock the freezer with meat. Dairy, fish, fruit and vegetables were all to hand in the village. Alcohol was home made. Food waste (if there was any) was fed to the livestock.
We are not going to return to this way of living, but we can learn lessons from this. Maybe the time has come to think about local supply to local people. Maybe incentivise the use of frozen food and reducing the huge volume and diversity of fresh food that is sold with a limited shelf life. Imagine for example introducing VAT on retail fresh food.
Reconsidering the 16% food waste from manufacturers, we make up to 400,000 fresh and frozen sausages a day at Westaway Sausages. But I cannot think of any food waste from our operation. Our processes run to OTOSIC (On Time, On Specification, Invoice Correct). We use AI to manage the production to ensure anywhere up to 50 lines are produced daily to the exact requirement with no overs. Yes, mistakes happen when you are running at up to 4 miles an hour. But in this event these sausages are donated to a local organisation that provides meals for the homeless and vulnerable in our immediate community.
I believe technology is already enabling smaller food manufacturers with say 50 employees or less, to compete against the giants running continuous process on bespoke lines. These giants need to keep processes running, they need robust supply chains with inherent buffer stocks, and they need to clear finished stock to storage or to customer. They will struggle to meet short term changes in demand.
However, I do have huge respect for organisations like Meat In A Net Zero World, which Westaway Sausages are proud to be part of. Formed in June 2020, 40 key stakeholders from across the UK meat production and supply chain came together, facilitated by WRAP, to pledge to make the UK meat industry one of the most efficient and sustainable in the world.
This has shown not only the opportunity to make changes but the benefits. No one company, or single individual will be able to change our sector, it has to take collaboration.
However, as a citizen and a consumer, I am also doing my part by reducing, reusing, and recycling the food I buy and eat.
I am also supporting the businesses and organisations that are working to make a difference. I urge you to do the same.
Together, we can make a huge impact and save the planet, one bite at a time.
#togetherwecan #cutfoodwaste