About one-third of all food grown for human consumption is lost or discarded every year, despite financial, environmental and ethical reasons to not waste food. We grow enough food to adequately feed everyone on the planet, yet hundreds of millions of people suffer from hunger, malnutrition or food insecurity. Together, this food waste accounts for about 8 per cent of the world's total greenhouse gas emissions. So, if wasting food is such a patently bad idea, why do we discard so much?
In Why Waste Food?, Andrew F. Smith investigates one of today's most pressing topics, examining the causes of avoidable food waste across the supply chain, and highlighting the ways in which everyone can do something to tackle this global concern.
Prologue
1 War on Food Waste
2 Farmed Waste
3 Manufactured Waste
4 Supermarket Waste
5 Restaurant Waste
6 Consumer Waste
7 Food Packaging Waste
Epilogue
References
Food Waste Resources
Acknowledgements
Index
Andrew F. Smith teaches at the New School, New York City. He is the author or editor of 32 books, including Fast Food: The Good, the Bad and the Hungry (Reaktion, 2016).
"A no-nonsense practical guide for solving one of the most pressing agricultural, environmental, and social problems of our time. Smith outlines the enormity of the problem – on farms, in our homes, in retail and food service – and warns that there is no silver bullet to making sure food is valued, preserved, and appreciated. All of us – policymakers, businesses, producers, and eaters – need to be part of the solution."
– Danielle Nierenberg, President of Food Tank