The fifth observance of International Day of Awareness of Food Loss and Waste 2024, last 29 September, had highlight the critical need for financing to bolster efforts to reduce food loss and waste, contribute to achieving climate goals and advancing the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development
Reducing food losses and waste is essential in a world where the number of people affected by hunger has been slowly on the rise since 2014, and tons and tons of edible food are lost and/or wasted every day.
- Theme2024:
"Stop Food Waste ! For the Planet and People."
Did You Know ?
- While an estimated 735 million people go hungry globally, food loss and waste generate 8 to 10 percent of GHGs and is a methane hotspot.
- Households waste over 1 billion meals worth of edible food every day, the equivalent of 1.3 meals every day for everyone in the world affected by hunger
- Opportunities to finance food loss and waste reduction and low-carbon diets remain untapped, with only USD 0.1 billion invested annually in 2019/20. This represents a minor fraction of annual needs, estimated at USD 48 to 50 billion.
UN
- Education: Inform, engage, educate !
Reducing food loss & waste is a key #ClimateAction step that can contribute to the protection of our planet, while helping tackle hunger around the world.
A 2018 International Food Waste Coalition report found that elementary schools were discarding 218.2 million meals annually.
Teachers as consumers from across the food systems, must teach their students at school to cut food loss and waste to enhance the use of natural resources, mitigate climate change and support food security and proper nutrition for all.
- Students have the power to raise awareness about food loss and food waste. By recognizing why food waste matters, students can take action to reduce the amount of food being wasted in their schools.
- They can recover, reduce, and recycle the food that goes uneaten at their schools.
- They can reduce food waste through improved ordering, prepping, and storage techniques, they can recover wholesome uneaten food and donate it to feed people in need, and they can recycle discarded food for other uses, including animal feed, compost, and energy generation.
- Activities:
One way to reduce food loss and waste, supported by your teachers in a cross-curricular, start a food recovery program at your school.
This program involves collecting unused, unopened, and unexpired food from the cafeteria for example, and donating it to local food banks and shelters.
To start a food recovery program, supported by a teacher, talk to your school direction and cafeteria staff to get their support. You can also reach out to local food banks and shelters to see if they are interested in partnering with you.
Many students are unaware of the impact of food loss and waste. By educating your peers, students can help raise awareness and encourage them to take action.
Students can also create posters or infographics to display around the school to remind students to reduce food waste.
If you have a school newspaper or website, you can write an article about food waste and how students can help, asking the responsible teachers of the school newspaper or the webmaster.
By encouraging sustainable eating habits, you can help reduce food waste and promote healthier lifestyles.
You can organize a food challenge or competition to encourage other students to eat more plant-based foods.
You can also work with your school cafeteria to promote sustainable eating habits, encourage them to use reusable or compostable food containers and utensils, or offer smaller portion sizes.
- Resources:
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