New Book Examines Food Waste Across the Supply Chain

castHumans have always wasted food, but the scale of the problem today is unprecedented. More than one-third of food produced for humans is not eaten but lost, while nearly 800 million people worldwide are food insecure. The impacts are profound, considering the growing food demand amid accelerating environmental degradation and climate change.

A new book from the Council for Agricultural Science and Technology, Food Waste Across the Supply Chain, cites experts from academia, government agencies, industry sectors, and NGOs by expanding from presentations at The Last Food Mile Conference held at the University of Pennsylvania. The authors:
• examine where and how much food waste occurs across the U.S. supply chain,
• assess food waste reduction and recovery potential, and
• discuss data gaps and critical needs for the nation to move toward a more sustainable food system.

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“Wasted food is wasted resources,” and even though public awareness about the problem is rising, the amount of food recovered for humans is small. As the book points out, “Evidence-based data from ground-up measurements will be essential to help us better understand consumer food behavior and contributing factors.” Such research can lead to practical solutions and meaningful change.

This publication is available at the CAST website for a $10 download fee. (Free for CAST members.)

Source: CAST

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