Food Waste 101

When discussing the climate crisis, many people think of reducing carbon emissions, switching to renewable energy, or protecting biodiversity. But there’s one major issue that often gets overlooked: food waste. It may not seem as urgent as rising sea levels or wildfires, but food waste is a serious environmental concern. After all, what’s one of the few things we all have in common? We all eat!

Nearly 60% of food produced for Canadians is lost and wasted annually. Of that, nearly 32%, or 11.2 million tonnes, is entirely edible and safe to eat. When all of this uneaten food is sent to landfills, it breaks down and releases methane, a greenhouse gas 25 times more potent than carbon dioxide. Additionally, when food is wasted, so are all the resources that went into producing it, including water, land, and energy. For example, around 50 litres of water are required to produce one single orange. When wasted, it not only undermines sustainable food systems, but contributes to the depletion of limited freshwater resources.

Fortunately, cutting food waste is one of the simplest and most effective ways to reduce methane emissions and minimize our environmental impact. By doing so, we not only lower emissions, but also make better use of the valuable resources behind every bite.

It’s important to distinguish between food loss and food waste. Though often used interchangeably, they refer to different points along the supply chain. Food loss occurs during production, post-harvest, storage, and transportation. For example, when crops are damaged during harvest or spoil during transport. Food waste, however, happens further down the chain, at the retail and consumer levels. This includes food that is safe and edible but is discarded due to over-purchasing, improper storage, or cosmetic imperfections. Understanding the difference is key if we want to effectively tackle this environmental issue, because each stage requires different solutions. Using the food recovery hierarchy, we can use solutions that prioritize waste reduction and recovery of food over recycling and rot of food:

• Reduce: Improve operations and practices to prevent food waste before it happens.
  Example: Grocery stores adjusting orders to avoid overstocking/spoilage.‍
• Recover: Redirect surplus edible food.
  Example: Donating food to people or animals.‍
• Recycle: Convert food waste into valuable products.
  Example: Creating compost or biodiesel.‍
• Rot: When food waste cannot be reduced, recovered, or recycled.
  Example: Throwing leftovers in the trash.

What can you do to help prevent food waste at an individual level? Following the hierarchy, you can start by:

• Storing your food properly. One reason why your food may be spoiling is because of improper storage. Prevent spoilage and food waste by learning how to store your food here!
• Understanding food dates. Understanding the different dates on your food can help prevent avoidable food waste. A best before date tells you how long a properly stored and unopened food product will keep its freshness, taste, and nutritional value. 23% of avoidable food waste is caused by the misuse and misunderstanding of best before dates. Foods that have passed their best before date can still be safe to eat and should not always be thrown out. Before deciding to throw something away, take a moment to check with your senses. If it looks, smells, and tastes fine, there’s no need to waste it. An expiry date, on the other hand, is required only on certain foods that have strict nutritional compositions and specifications. Food should not be bought, sold or eaten if their expiry date has passed.
• Sharing extra food with others. Have too many leftovers? Try sharing it with your friends, family, coworkers, neighbours, or community members! Many local food banks, such as Leftovers and Harvest Manitoba, happily accept food donations. 
• Trying food rescue apps. Also known as food waste apps, food rescue apps help rescue food that would otherwise be thrown out as waste. Some are designed to offer discounts on items nearing their best-before dates at participating grocery stores, while others allow users to purchase surplus food from local restaurants in "surprise bags" at a reduced price.
• Utilizing your food scraps. With the right treatment, the parts of food we usually think of as scraps can make for tasty meals! Carrot top pesto, anybody?
• Composting your food waste. Food waste is sometimes unavoidable, but it doesn’t always need to be trashed. To mitigate your environmental impact, consider composting! Green Action Centre has countless online resources dedicated to helping you set up a successful composting system while keeping food out of landfills. 

Food waste may seem like a small problem, but it has big environmental consequences. The good news is that we as consumers have the power to change our habits. When we follow the food waste hierarchy and make mindful decisions, we help protect the planet, conserve resources, and ensure more food reaches the people who need it most.