WASTING LESS

FOOD
together
JoAnne Berkenkamp
July 19, 2015

What gets wasted

Milk
Meat
Fruits & Veg

Uneaten
Eaten

Seafood
Grains
0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

And 95% of our wasted food ends up in landfills

$162
billion

Photo courtesy of Flickr via Tax

Credits

Food Demand as
Population Reaches 9
Billion
60
% Increase
in Food Production Needed

0
2010 2015 2020 2025 2030 2035 2040 2045 2050

/////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

Here in the US

30%

of food losses is enough food to feed all 50

million food insecure Americans their total diet.

Where does food waste

happen?

In what proportions?

/////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

Why is it happening in stores?

Fully stocked shelves

High variety
Low staffing / poor handling
Sell-by dates

/////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

Why is it happening in foodservice?

Large portions
Extensive menus
Inflexibility
Unpredictable consumption
Kitchen culture
Donations challenging

/////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////

Why is it happening at home?

Buy too much
Cook too much
Lack of knowledge and
motivation
Date labels
$1500 per year
Dont see the cost

Part 2: What would help.

Government policy
Industry action
Consumers

Government Policy
Better data
Ambitious national goals and monitoring
across the hierarchy
Standardize date labelling
Food donation policy (liab, tax benefits,
grocery?)
Direct govt funding in line with hierarchy
Agency follow-up to Exec Order
Bans on landfilling organics / support for
alternative disposal

Food industry
Mainly restaurants, retail and
foodservice
F&V: Cosmetic standards and risksharing
In-store practices
Portion sizes
More donation
Landfill diversion

Consumers
Changing social norms
Awareness raising
Practical tools for reducing waste
(Danas book)
Education on date labels and food
safety
Reach kids

Things we dont know

Edible vs. inedible?
How much F&V loss at farm level?
How much loss in each stage of the
supply chain?
Impacts of major reduction in FW?
(farmers, prices, access, enviro)

Coming Soon
Update of Wasted
Waste Free
Kitchen Handbook
ReFed Industry
Roadmap
Ad Council
campaign
2030 national goals
Sust Dev Goals

JoAnne
Berkenkamp
jberkenkamp@nrdc
.org
www.nrdc.org