Colossal wastage that is food for thought, Pg 7

Key Highlights

Food Waste Alarming Trends

• UNEP’s Food Waste Index 2024: 1.05 billion tonnes wasted globally; India among top contributors.
• India's per capita food waste lower than U.S., but large population makes total waste significant.

Environmental and Economic Implications

• Food waste leads to massive emissions, land/water misuse, and moral loss amid hunger.
• 78 million tonnes discarded in India annually; 783 million people still hungry.

Household & Systemic Failures

• Major waste at household level (61%).
• Poor storage, over-purchasing, retail inefficiencies, and climate shocks worsen the crisis.

Reform Measures

• Promote reuse, composting, and food redistribution.
• Invest in cold storage, logistics, awareness campaigns.
• Initiatives like "Save Food Share Food" highlighted.

Analysis & Way Forward

• Food waste is a moral, environmental and economic crisis.
• Holistic food management system is needed with government, private sector, and citizen collaboration.

Mains Mock Question:

Food waste in India is both a development and environmental failure. Analyse the causes and suggest a multi-pronged strategy to address the issue.