14 DAY TRIAL // A new report from experts with the Economic Research Service at the United States Department of Agriculture (USDS) reveals that Americans living in the US let around 141 trillion calories go to waste every single year. This abuse continues to take place even as millions go hungry around the world.
This is definitely not the first study to highlight this huge problem. Previous researches have demonstrated that North Americans let anywhere from a quarter to half of the food they purchase go to waste or spoil in the refrigerator. The new statistics show that each person living in the US squanders 1,249 calories per day.
Jean Buzby, Hodan Wells, and Jeffrey Hyman, the ERS researchers who compiled the report, argue that reducing this massive volume of wasted food would have significant implications at a global level, by reducing the international price of food due to extra availability. At this point, the extreme demands of the US market are driving price upwards.
The team determined that, in 2010, the US population wasted a total of 60.3 billion kilograms (133 billion pounds) of food, including percentages of the national harvest, edible foods, blemished food, perishable foods, foods that can get contaminated by mold or pests, and the food left on plates.
The amount of food lost was equal to around 31 percent of the country's total food supply and was worth around $161.6 billion (€118 billion). Dairy products lead the way in terms of losses, with 11.3 billion kilograms (25 billion pounds), followed by vegetables with roughly the same amount, and grain products with 8.4 billion kilograms (18.5 billion pounds).
However, the report also notes three reasons why interest in this issue is on the rise in the general population. The first is a growing awareness of the costs involved with wasting food. The second is the general realization that food waste carries hidden costs. The third reason is that people are beginning to realize that all the food they throw away could go towards feeding the billions still living in starvation.
“Economic incentives and consumer behavior will be paramount in reducing food loss,” the trio writes in their report. “If food loss is prevented or reduced to the extent that less food is needed to feed people, then this would likely reduce food prices in the United States and the rest of the world,” they add, quoted by NPR.
The document also highlights some of the initiatives that have emerged in the United States, where various groups and organizations are coming up with innovative new ways and business models of recovering wasted food and redistributing it to those in need, before the products become unusable.