This post is part of the series EU Agriculture 2020.
Lots of discussion, even fake news, on the topic of food waste. This is a serious problem, but not in the way it’s often presented in the media.
The way our food is produced and distributed is horrendously wasteful. Food that’s processed (including meats), transported long distances or grown with wasteful pesticides and fertilizers is not only often of very poor quality, but horrendously wasteful if it’s thrown away. Is the answer to this to accept foods past their use by or expiration dates? Should supermarkets just throw this food away or give it to the homeless?
A large portion of what supermarkets sell also just isn’t really necessary, like fruits and vegetables out of season or a lot of the processed foods.
Almost every food with a nutrition label is a processed food, and these labels often trick people into buying things they don’t need. Rather than think about the quality of the food, and if it was produced locally or in a healthy way, these labels make you think you should buy according to ingredients. The best place to buy food is one that doesn’t label their food this way.
I think the answer lies in reforming production and distribution systems. Buying food at farmers’ markets, or local produce shops, not only often results in higher quality food, but much less inherent waste. When people pay more for higher quality food, they tend to think more about wasting it. It’s also really useful if people grow a portion of the food they eat.
One of the best ways everyone can waste less food is to avoid supermarkets entirely, or only use them for very basic food like seasonal vegetables, potatoes, rice and so on.
