What Environmental Problems Does Wasting Food Cause?

The study of the American Waste Management Services (AWMSI) should raise
awareness among many, as Americans are said to be wasting too much after about
3,000 tons or three million pounds of food waste every day during Christmas.
However, do you know that waste of food waste can worsen the global warming
situation and climate change phenomenon that the world is facing today. How is it?

When we waste food, we’re not just wasting food. We’re also wasting all the
resources that went into growing it. The illustrates just how much this adds up. Food
waste ends up wasting nearly a quarter of our water supply in the form of uneaten
food or over ＄172 billion in wasted water. Each year, as a country we spend over
＄220 billion growing, transporting, and processing almost 70 million tons of food that
ends up going to waste. If the land that we cultivate growing food that goes to waste
in the U.S. were all in one place, it would cover more than 3/4 of California! Growing
food that goes to waste ends up using up 21% of our freshwater, 19% of our fertilizer,
18% of our cropland, and 21% of our landfill volume.

The process occurs when a household waste dump, which you see little to no
effect or changes to the landfill's disposal site, fails to explain within a certain period.

The situation has led to increased demand for garbage disposal areas, needing
larger areas and involving many locations around the city, increasing the cost of
disposing of food waste and solid waste. Green Technology Corporation U.S.
director, said the situation was threatening the environment, causing pollution,
increasing global temperatures, mitigating climate change and damaging weather
schedules such as rains and storms around the world.

He said the impact on the world's ecosystems is also exacerbated especially

for microorganisms or small animals that are not 'resistant' to global temperature
changes. "Imagine, as the food chain breaks down, colonies or animal communities
begin to change and move out of their habitats in search of food," he said, recalling
everyone playing their role in ensuring the sustainability of the environmental
ecosystem through simple steps, controlling waste wastes.

"Change the way you buy food, avoid unnecessary goods. Most women work
regularly to waste food on expiration dates because they are busy and unable to
cook. "Disposal of expired food waste such as vegetables and fruits can be recycled
as a dishwasher or organic floor. In addition to being chemical-free, environmentally
friendly, it also saves household expenses," he said. In addition, food waste can be
reused as compost, animal feed or biogas-producing raw materials.

This comes with a heavy carbon footprint as well. When food is disposed in a
landfill it rots and becomes a significant source of methane - a potent greenhouse
gas with 21 times the global warming potential of carbon dioxide. Growing and
transporting the food that goes to waste emits as much carbon pollution as 39 million
passenger vehicles. The global food system is responsible for up to one third of all
human-caused greenhouse gas emissions, making it one of the largest contributors
to climate change, according to the Consultative Group on International Agricultural
Research. The fact that we carelessly waste 40% of our food in the U.S. and 33%
globally means there is huge potential to reduce our environmental footprint. Big
picture, energy and transportation tend to be the face of climate change, but with
food’s impact arguably larger it definitely deserves more of a focus.

A problem as big as food waste, the good news is that there are so many
different ways to intervene and help. It’s actually really a collection of smaller
problems and it sort of bookmarks the food supply chain with the most food going to
waste either at the farm or at the consumer level. For us as consumers, a lot of the
solutions are things we already know and just forget sometimes as we get busy.
Proper meal planning and making a grocery shopping list each week is key. If you’re
anything like me, it’ll save you some dough as you’ll avoid impulse buys on items that
might go to waste later if you hadn’t exactly thought through how to work it into a
meal.

Everyone can use kitchen projects like pickling, fermenting, and canning as
ways to keep their fresh fruits vegetables from going to waste. Some of our most
delicious dishes first emerged as ways to make the harvest last and keep food from
going to waste -- sauerkraut, pickles, salami (and really all charcuterie), cheese, and
many more! Getting informed about where your food comes from is a huge step too.
In our experience, once you realize how much time, energy, and resources go into
growing our food, you are a lot less likely to waste it! When in doubt, shop your fridge
and pantry before you shop the store!

References
 Ben Simon (July, 2018). What Can Be Done To Reduce Food Waste. Retrieved
31 August 2019, from

https://www.quora.com/What-can-be-done-to-reduce-food-waste/
answer/Ben-Simon-49?ref=forbes&rel_pos=2

https://www.forbes.com/sites/quora/2018/07/18/what-environmental-
problems-does-wasting-food-cause/#40f937db2f7a

Mangai Balasegaram (March 25, 2018). Malaysia Is 8th Worst In The World
For Plastic Waste. The Star. Retrieved 31 August 2019, from

https://www.star2.com/living/2018/03/25/plastic-waste-pollution
APPENDIX 2