The truth about food wastage

According to research by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, up to 40 percent of every American's food - the equivalent of 1400 kilocalories - is reportedly thrown away each day.

But the US aren't the only country to throw away vast amounts of food. In the UK, 8.3 million tonnes of food and drink are wasted each year, of which 5.3 million could have been consumed, according to Wrap (Waste & Resources Action Programme), a government funded initiative. Reports also show that the cost of this waste is at least GBP£12 billion - that's the equivalent of GBP£480 for each household, or GBP£680 for families with children.

In fact, food waste is so widespread that experts believe if it could be eliminated there would already enough food to feed the expected 2050 world population of nine billion people. Analysts also believe there would be huge environmental advantages as well: with a saving of 20 million tonnes of carbon dioxide a year in the UK, the equivalent of taking one in four cars off the road.

Supermarkets take action

Now though, supermarkets are taking action to abolish the likes of the "buy one get one free" offers, replacing them instead with "buy one get one free later" - meaning a customer will buy an item of food which is included in the offer, then get the second product a week later for free - hopefully cutting down on the waste from the extra product.

Supermarkets are also starting to print storage information on packaging, pointing out that apples, for instance, keep longer in if refrigerated and cucumbers can last an extra two weeks if kept in their plastic wrapping. Packaging is also being used to prolong product life: leading UK grocer Marks & Spencer (M&S) have already replaced the plastic tray in which beef joints were sold with a 'skin pack' film that fits tightly and keeps the meat fresh for four extra days. In addition, the reduction of instore waste remains a key focus for supermarkets, many of which have committed themselves to stop sending waste to landfill by 2015.

"It is inefficient to throw away food that could be sold," says Jack Cunningham, Environmental Affairs Manager at J Sainsbury, which produces 56,000 tonnes of instore food waste a year. "Our store managers are incentivised to minimise waste, and we cut prices as food nears its use by date."

Actually, like many retailers, Sainsbury gives to charities unsold food that is within its use-by day; it also works with suppliers to discourage waste.

What a waste

Ultimately, however, a large amount of food waste from supermarkets is the result of so-called "damaged products." While some of these can be reduced in price and sold still, much of it is not in a condition to be sold - particularly when it has been exposed to another product. A main problem in supermarkets is in handling chilled and frozen items which have been left out of the cold chain for longer than 20 minutes. This deems the item unsafe to sell and the product has to be wasted off.

Often, food is left out because customers abandon products they no longer want. Of course, in the name of efficiency, consumers then just leave the product where it goes unnoticed, instead of returning the item to the cold chain. It is estimated that each week supermarkets lose thousands of pounds worth of stock because of products that have to be wasted off.

But how can this be prevented? Is the responsibility with the supermarkets to educate consumers about the cost of leaving, say, a packet of sausages next to a box of cereal when they decide they no longer want it? Or do supermarkets need to find new ways to encourage less waste by incentivising consumers to purchase more efficiently?

Ultimately, where does the blame lie? The answer, quite simply, is with each and every one of us. We're all guilty of throwing food away, having cooked too much or stashed something in the fridge and forgotten it's there. And, as such, each person needs to take responsibility for their actions and work to cut the amount of food being wasted so we can overcome the challenges this very real problem seems to pose.

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London highlights food waste |Sustaining the food chain |Do you understand food labelling? |Food round-up 2009

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