Food waste is a very serious issue, not only in the United States but around the world. One of the major contributors to food waste is the food industry. In America, billions worth of food is thrown away rather than being eaten, this is especially true in most restaurants wherein people leave unfinished meal, so servers are forced to chuck them out.
In a normal household, food waste count is around 7.3 million tonnes. The amount of avoidable food waste that could have been eaten is around 4.4 million tonnes. An average restaurant food waste per person per year is 112.6 kgs. Basically, 60% of the food that is thrown out could have been eaten.
Around 19 million tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions were linked with food waste. The good news is that from 2007 to 2012, the total amount of food waste from households decreased by 15%. Avoidable food waste from households dropped by 21%. Unfortunately, though, the food industry still fails to meet the commitment to minimize them by 5% between 2012 and 2015.
Even though there is a combined effort to reduce food waste and awareness is raised, a lot of food still ends up in the trash, especially in the food industry. When you throw edible food, money is wasted, and you are contributing to more waste, thus increasing your environmental footprint.
Reducing food waste is very important, and it comes with a lot of benefits. Considering how much food goes to the trash, imagine how much everyone can save on their food expenses. Here are four reasons why restaurants should reduce their food waste.
Financial impact
In the United Kingdom, they were able to reduce food waste for five consecutive years, and they were able to save around 6.5 billion British pounds. Also, 86 million British pounds were saved through avoided food waste disposal costs. Basically, buying less food means more money is saved.
Also, climate change is not just bad for the planet; it is also bad for our pockets. Food prices are expected to increase by up to 84% by 2050 because of how climate change will affect food production. It is leading to a lot of money wasted already, with restaurants throwing away thousands worth of edible food. Food waste as a whole amount to $1 trillion lost.
Environmental impact
In the United Kingdom, from 2007 to 2012, 3.4 million tonnes of greenhouse gases were avoided per year. This puts things into perspective; it is comparable to taking 1.4 million cars off the road for a whole year. A significant portion of greenhouse gases did not end up in our atmosphere.
Another important thing that we need to take note of is how wasted food is the third-largest producer of carbon dioxide if it were a country. With 3.3 billion tons of carbon dioxide produced, food waste has a great impact on the climate. With more food being wasted, landfills continue to rise, attracting wildlife and putting delicate ecosystems out of balance. Seafood waste that is being thrown back into the ocean has a detrimental impact on marine life and their balance.
Energy and resources conservation
Pollution, energy, and resources are conserved in the process of emitting food waste. From growing crops, manufacturing, transportation, and selling food, all of these processes use energy and resources.
Community
With millions of people around the world being underfed and malnourished, it is important that we make the most of the food that we have. Restaurants are encouraged to donate their perfectly edible food to charity, or soup kitchens to help the needy. Each person in America and Europe wastes more food than their body weight every year, which shows how massive the problem is. Food waste in developed countries is equivalent to all the food that is produced by developing countries. Just the food waste in America alone would be enough to feed at least 200 million people in need.
One of the best ways to make sure that you can preserve your food properly, it is best to have your storage properly maintained, and they should be fixed immediately if something is wrong. There are local service providers that can help you, as a commercial refrigeration repair in San Francisco. This way, restaurants can lessen the food that they need to throw away.