Hi everyone,
I'm not pretty sure whether this is the right place to share this, but this has been disturbing me quite for some time now. Hence, I really would like to discuss this out here. I recently came across this infographic that shows the total amount of food wasted all over the world. https://www.unipointsoftware.com/food-waste-facts/ The data sure is very disturbing. We, as consumers, are toatlly ignorant of the fact that we contribute so much to food waste. Food is not only wasted in the stage of food precessing, but also when it reaches the consumers. How do you think such great loss can be reduced? Can we think of any solution to this? Is there something we consumers could do to reduce food waste?
According to a tv programme, yes, singaporeans waste a lot of food. Can't remember the huge figure of waste food per year.
With food delivery becoming hot, food packaging waste is also starting to increase. That worries me a lot as well.
Food wastage can be reduced if individuals take small steps to change their behaviours.
1. Buy only what you're certain you will eat. Many times when we go grocery shopping, we end up buying more than what we need, and this results in food wastage. An easy way to counter this is to make a list of things you know you will need, and stick to the list when you go grocery shopping. This way, you don't run the risk of buying more than what you need, and you get to save some money.
2. Don't trash your leftovers. Leftovers can come in handy. You'll be surprised the dishes you can whip up using just leftovers. In fact, common leftovers (rice, meat, sauces etc.) can often be made into brand new dishes. For more ideas, check out http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/30/clean-out-the-fridge-recipes_n_1242424.html
3. Donate to food banks. Food banks basically collect your (unopened) leftovers, such as canned food, dry ingredients, biscuits etc. that may be close to expiry date. They will then repackage it and distribute to their beneficiaries, such as needy families and charities. There are many food banks in Singapore, just search on Google and you're bound to find some worthy causes you can be a part of.
Ultimately, eat wisely, and remember that there are many people out there who do not have the luxury of wasting food like we do.
Wedding banquets come to mind. For some people, a display of wealth and generosity outweighs the need to cut down on food wastage.
Thanks for the information guys. I would try to cut down on food wastage by reducing food portions purchased from shops.
Yes, totally agree.. we should only cook or buy what we will finish