THE GLOBAL PROBLEM OF FOOD WASTE

Transcription

1 THE GLOBAL PROBLEM OF FOOD WASTE Teaching resource Material prepared by the Institute for Sustainable Futures, UTS and the UTS Business School Prepared April 2015 This material can be modified and drawn upon by teachers at any institutions This project is supported by the Environmental Trust as part of the NSW EPA's Waste Less, Recycle More initiative, funded from the waste levy. We, the people, do have the power to stop [the] tragic waste of resources if we regard it as socially unacceptable to waste food. 1 This resource contains: Introduction: Learning objectives, suggested lesson format, some quick statistics Resources: Reports, infographics, multimedia Ideas for teaching: Class discussion questions & interactive activities, assessment questions & other possible assessment tasks Materials for students: Suggested reading list for students 1 Tristram Stuart The global food waste scandal, TEDSalon London Spring 2012

2 INTRODUCTION FOR EDUCATORS Learning Objectives 1. To identify the key factors causing food wastage globally 2. To analyse the impact of 'post-consumer' waste in relation to global food wastage 3. To identify the potential actions key stakeholders could take to avoid global food wastage 4. To analyse how food waste avoidance could address global food issues. Suggested lesson format: A 60 minute workshop/tutorial: 1. Key facts can be delivered through a short five minute presentation 2. Watch the video Global Food Wastage Scandal 3. a) Form students into small teams and ask them to answer the discussion questions, using infographics as hand outs, OR b) Form students into teams and ask them to complete one of he interactive activities 4. Suggest students read from the reading list to answer a selected assessment question. Some quick statistics Around one third of the food produced globally is lost or wasted. 2 Post-consumer waste is a much more significant problem in developed than developing countries 3. Post-consumer food waste is generated by the end users of a food product (e.g. households, restaurants), as opposed to pre-consumer waste that occurs in food production and processing. Eliminating food waste could save the global economy US$120 and 300 billion per year by To achieve this would require a 20-50% reduction in consumer food waste 4. Food waste is currently valued at more than US$400 billion per year, as the global middle class expands the cost could rise to US$600 billion within 15 years 5. The European Commission calculates that in the EU alone, 90 million tonnes of food or 180 kg per person are wasted every year. Much of this is food still suitable for human consumption. 6 A country like America has twice as much food on its shop shelves and in its restaurants than is actually required to feed the American people. 7 Getting food from the farm to our fork eats up 10 percent of the total U.S. energy budget, uses 50 percent of U.S. land, and swallows 80 percent of all freshwater consumed in the United States 8. Americans are throwing out the equivalent of $165 billion pa in wasted food 9 Of all the food that is lost from farm to fork [in the US], only 3 percent is composted Gustavsson, J., C. Cederberg, and U. Sonesson (2011) Global food losses and food waste: extent, causes and prevention. Report by the Swedish Institute for Food and Biotechnology for the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations: Rome 4 content/uploads/2015/02/wrap- NCE_Economic- environmental- gains- food- waste.pdf Tristram Stuart The global food waste scandal, TEDSalon London Spring NRDC Wasted: How America Is Losing Up to 40 Percent of Its Food from Farm to Fork to Landfill NRDC Issue Paper August 2012 ip:12-06-b 9 ibid 10 U.S. EPA, Municipal Solid Waste Generation, Recycling and Disposal in the United States: Tables and Figures for 2010,

3 The UK throws away more than 7 million tonnes of food and drink every year from homes - most of which could have been safely consumed. 11 UK hospitality sector (hotels, pubs, restaurants and quick service restaurants) could save 724 million a year by tackling food waste

4 RESOURCES REPORTS/ FACTSHEETS Teaching resource: Global problem of food waste Global food losses and food waste - Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), 2011 This reports looks at the extent, causes and prevention of food waste as a global issue. The study highlights the losses occurring along the entire food chain, and makes assessments of their magnitude, based on research conducted between 2010 and It includes snapshot cases examples from food retailers and producers about initiatives leading to or reducing food waste. Global Food: Waste Not, Want Not Institution of Mechanical Engineers, 2013 This report looks at the differences in food waste issues, quantities and solutions across the world, relating food waste to the problem of world hunger and the challenges of feeding an ever increasing population. Wasted: How America Is Losing Up to 40 Percent of Its Food from Farm to Fork to Landfill NRDC Issue Paper August 2012 ip:12-06-b Considers food waste at each stage of food production and use: harvest, processing, distribution, retail in-store, retail beyond-store, food service, households. This 26-page report includes charts, infographics and break out boxes explaining core concepts and sharing numerous short case study examples of companies and initiatives addressing inefficiencies at each stage of production, including the total amount of food saved and the dollars saved for each initiative. Includes a useful Appendix Summary of Food Waste by Supply Chain Stage with both drivers and potential remedies for food waste production at each stage. Creating a Sustainable Food Future World Resources Institute, By 2050 the world s agricultural system must simultaneously produce far more food for a population expected to reach about 9.6 billion, provide economic opportunities for the hundreds of millions of rural poor and reduce environmental impacts, including ecosystem degradation and high greenhouse gas emissions. This 144 page report provides an initial analysis of the scope of the challenge and the technical prospects of different approaches. Proposed solutions fall into three categories: 1. Solutions that help to close the food gap by reducing growth in food consumption in ways that advance or safeguard human well-being [this includes food waste reduction]; 2. Solutions that help to close the food gap by increasing food production on existing agricultural land; and 3. Solutions that do not necessarily produce more food but reduce the environmental impact of food production, particularly greenhouse gas emissions. Food Wastage Footprint Impacts on Natural Resources Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), 2013 The first study to analyze the impacts of global food wastage from an environmental perspective, looking specifically at its consequences for the climate, water and land use, and biodiversity. For this study, wastage incorporates both food loss and food waste along the food supply chain and a model has been developed to answer two key questions: What is the magnitude of food wastage impact on the environment? What are the main sources of these impacts, in terms of regions, commodities and phases of the food supply chain involved with a view to identify environmental hotspots related to food wastage? Food Waste: The Next Food Revolution Modern Farmer, 2013 Half the food in the last year was thrown out. One billion people are hungry. The next food revolution is about what you're not eating. This article from the US explores the extent of the global food waste problem and what can be done about it.

5 What a waste: Analysis of household expenditure on food waste Australia Institute, 2009 A report on a survey of 1,600 households across Australia which asked about the food they throw out and their attitudes and behavior in relation to food waste. The report presents data on the quantity and value of food wasted, who is wasting food and the motivations behind this behavior. The survey revealed that Australian households are throwing out more than $5 billion worth of food each year. VIDEOS Food waste footprint 1 and 2: Two short clips by the UN Food and Agricultural Organisation on 1) the scale of global food waste and what can be done about it, and 2) The full economic, environmental and social costs of food loss and waste. TED Talk: The Global Food Waste Scandal - Tristram Stuart delves into the shocking data of wasted food, calling for a more responsible use of global resources. (15 minutes) Waste Deep is a 20min documentary gives an insight into the environmental and social impacts of our wasteful ways, drawing attention to much of the unnecessary packaging that is choking our lives, oceans and animals and shows how food and plastic waste can be avoided. Love Food Films are some very short films about food waste and sustainability in the food supply chain. Some are light hearted and funny, some are thought-provoking, others have helpful tips. (30 seconds 5 min in length) INFOGRAPHICS Some infographics about food waste are listed below. Global food loss and waste World Bank: 7/infographic-food-loss-waste Food waste visualized (Forbes) 04/06/food-waste-visualized-infographic-1-of-2/

6 Teaching resource: Global problem of food waste How Much Food Nearly 7 Billion People Waste (Good Magazine) Food Waste, CNN: Food waste at different points of the supply chain in developed and developing countries SOLUTIONS? 10 ways to cut global food loss and waste: The third in the World Resources Institute s blog series Creating a Sustainable Food Future. The Global Food Banking Network includes food banking case studies from around the world Global Initiative on Food Loss and Waste Reduction a summary of strategies by the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations Global Food Demand and Supply to 2050: Notes from a roundtable series in Australia in Cafeteria Culture: Working creatively to achieve zero-waste public school cafeterias and climatesmart communities Case study of a program to reduce waste in cafeterias. Food Alliance describes what local government practitioners can do, lists inspiring projects and links to other resources Food Waste Reduction tips from Oxfam Food waste reduction tips and resources by NSW Government Food Rescue US Think Eat Save tips for reducing food waste

7 Food waste reduction tips from chefs

8 IDEAS FOR TEACHING CLASS DISCUSSION QUESTIONS Teaching resource: Global problem of food waste What are the key contributors to global food waste? How well known and well understood is the issue of global food waste? How does food waste vary in developed and developing countries? What impact does post-consumer waste have on the issue of food waste? Thinking of the social, technical, political dimensions of food waste as an issue, what are some pushes and pulls towards reducing food waste? What role might retailers play in food waste reduction? What are some examples of consumer pressure shaping business responses to food waste? INTERACTIVE ACTIVITIES (40 Mins) 1. Prepare a rapid debate TOPIC: It s not the consumer s responsibility to reduce food waste it s the big retailers (OR government OR business). Form the class into two teams and allocate them as the Affirmative and Negative teams. Ask each team to select three speakers and divide again into 3 smaller groups. Tell the teams that each speaker will have 2 minutes to present their argument through a speech. The three speakers should first spend 5 minutes together agreeing on the key points they will cover and the team case. The team case is a one-sentence statement that presents the main argument of the Negative or Affirmative team in relation to the topic. The speaker then returns to their small team and they have only ten minutes to prepare their speech. Teams then present their speech and rebuttal of the opposing teams arguments in consecutive order staring with the 1 st speaker of the Affirmative. 2. Stakeholder System Mapping From students into small teams and allocate each team a sheet of butchers paper. Ask each team to map out all the key stakeholder groups who can affect or are affected by the global food wastage problem (10 mins). Upon completion ask the student to imagine a scenario where food wastage become socially unacceptable. Ask the students to rank each of their stakeholder groups where 1=most affected by and 10=least affected by the imagined scenario (10 mins). Ask students to select the group they think will be most affected. Acting as a team of consultants ask the team to prepare a brief proposal to assist the group in avoiding food wastage (10 mins). Once completed ask the students to consider how the avoidance strategy of their selected stakeholder group (if implemented) might have flow-on effects to other stakeholders groups. Ask them to record some of the beneficial flow on effects in relation to the other stakeholder groups (10 mins)

9 ASSESSMENT QUESTIONS (ESSAY FORMAT) Outline and evaluate the effectiveness of at least three policy responses to this food avoidance that have been taken at a regional, national or state level in countries outside Australia. Analyse at least three major trends exacerbating the global food wastage problem. In your answer make recommendations regarding ways these trends could be reversed by food wastage avoidance strategies. Food wastage is increasingly unavoidable due to rapid urbanization. Outline the evidence to support and refute this statement. Food wastage avoidance is the sole responsibility of consumers not food producers. Evaluate this statement. In your answer refer to specific food waste avoidance strategies to support your argument. Using food waste as a theme, explore what [your discipline] can contribute to creating a solution OTHER POSSIBLE ASSESSMENT TASKS Short film outlining the issue for a general audience Create an infographic taking one element of food wastage (eg. Food waste in agriculture, in food transport and storage, in retail, in the home, in the commercial sector) and use the infographic to outline: the scale of the issue, the main causes of waste, the relationship to consumers. As an extension find a NFP organization who works on this topic and create an infographic that can be used in their education campaigns Interview a business leader, researcher or policy maker on the issue of food waste avoidance and create a story for radio based on this interview Select two countries and explore their food production systems and the food waste they generate compare and contrast the main social, technological, environmental, economic and politician factors influencing food waste. How have these factors shaped the quantity and type of food waste created? What innovations are being seen in each country to tackle this issue?

10 SUGGESTED READING LIST FOR STUDENTS Griffin, M, Sobal, S. & Lyson, T.A An analysis of a community food waste stream. Agric Hum Values, vol. 26, pp Lundqvist, J., Fraiture, C. de & Molden, D Saving Water: From Field to Fork Curbing Losses and Wastage in the Food Chain. SIWI Policy Brief. SIWI. NRDC Wasted: How America Is Losing Up to 40 Percent of Its Food from Farm to Fork to Landfill NRDC Issue Paper August 2012 ip:12-06-b Pal, U.S., Khan, Md.K., Sahoo, G.R. & Sahoo, N.R Post-harvest losses on tomato, cabbage and cauliflower. Agricultural mechanization in Asia, Africa and Latin America, vol. 33, pp Parfitt, J., Barthel, M. & Macnaughton, S Food waste within food supply chains: quantification and potential for change to 2050, Phil. Trans. R. Soc., vol. 365, pp Stuart, T Waste uncovering the global food scandal. Penguin Books: London, ISBN: UNEP The environmental food crisis. ISBN: Ventour, L The food we waste. Banbury: WRAP, ISBN: (version 2). Waldron, K., Faulds, C. & Smith, A. (Ed.) Total Food Exploiting co products minimizing waste. Institute of Food Research. Norwich. ISBN Gustavsson, J., C. Cederberg, and U. Sonesson (2011) Global food losses and food waste: extent, causes and prevention. Report by the Swedish Institute for Food and Biotechnology for the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations: Rome Institution of Mechanical Engineers Global Food: Waste Not, Want Not. Searchinger, T. et al The Great Balancing Act: Creating a Sustainable Food Future. Report for the World Resources Institute. Baker, D., Fear, J. & Denniss, R What a waste: An analysis of household expenditure on Food. Report by the Australia Institute Food and Agriculture Organisation Food wastage footprint: Impacts on Natural Resources. Summary Report for the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations