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When we think about environmental problems, images of industrial pollution or car exhaust come to mind—not dinner. In reality, the food sector poses one of the largest threats to our planet.
Food waste occurs at all stages of the food cycle: when farmers leave unharvested crops to rot in fields because it is not profitable to harvest them; when inappropriate storage and handling causes food to spoil; when retailers turn away 'ugly' produce; and when confusing date labels cause consumers to discard food that is still safe to eat. Food waste at each of these stages contributes to 40 percent of all food produced in the U.S. going uneaten—a fact made paradoxical given that one in six people in the U.S. faces food insecurity.
Agriculture accounts for up to 80 percent of freshwater consumption in the U.S. To produce 8 ounces of strawberries, it takes about 10 gallons of water, whereas six ounces of steak requires an exorbitant 674 gallons of water!
Given that agriculture takes up 50 percent of land area in the U.S., proper water management matters greatly as droughts will continue to exacerbate water scarcity. California, often referred to as America's breadbasket, is already vulnerable to drought, and as climate change intensifies, these droughts will only last longer and happen more frequently.
When we waste food, we are also wasting the fuel required to transport it. Transporting food from farms to consumer households consumes 10 percent of the total U.S. energy budget.
The impact of food waste ripples into other issues, too, including municipal solid waste and greenhouse gas emissions. Uneaten food comprises the largest category of municipal solid waste reaching U.S. landfills, and it accounts for 23 percent of U.S. methane emissions, since methane is a byproduct of its decomposition.
[...] Confusing date labels cause a large portion of food waste. In the absence of federal standards, food manufacturers and retailers decide on labels and cut-off dates based on their own market standards. Consequently, American consumers find diverse and inconsistent food date labels in grocery stores. Various items read 'sell by', 'use by', 'best by', and/or 'enjoy by', and their meanings vary from product to product.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday August 30 2019, @03:29AM (7 children)
What if people just ate dried powder for food to cut down on waste?
(Score: 2, Touché) by fustakrakich on Friday August 30 2019, @03:37AM
There's always Soylent.
And we're supposed to eat bugs, so they can have steak at the Climate Confabs in Paris
La politica e i criminali sono la stessa cosa..
(Score: 3, Interesting) by takyon on Friday August 30 2019, @03:41AM (5 children)
That could be a legit option, as long as the price is right.
Ever seen PB2 Powdered Peanut Butter? It's a nice idea, but expensive for what it is. You can get a comparable jar of generic peanut butter for a fraction of the price. They also market it for its lower calorie and fat content, which may or may not be beneficial.
Powdered milk is probably more reasonable, although I don't see it in all stores. I just let a gallon jug of milk spoil this week. Oops.
Most people on the planet have a significant amount of grains in their diet. Such as rice, oatmeal, pasta, etc. These can be stored for months, possibly years, without spoiling (beware those little bugs). Beans, lentils, chickpeas, and other legumes can also be stored dry.
You can use a food dehydrator to dry various fruits and vegetables. I recently used one to dry some jalapenos, ground them with a coffee grinder, and made a pretty good spice out of that. And then there's pressure canning, which can even be used to preserve meat if you do it properly.
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 2) by c0lo on Friday August 30 2019, @04:34AM (2 children)
Why, the gall! You have all those pulses and cereals and dried apricots and raisins... You, you... arghhh... you just stay away from my steak, you hear me? (grin)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
(Score: 2) by takyon on Friday August 30 2019, @04:38AM (1 child)
Steak so juicy, it's floating around in a jar of cloudy water.
[SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]
(Score: 2) by c0lo on Friday August 30 2019, @05:09AM
Bleagh!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoFiw2jMy-0 https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday August 30 2019, @06:21AM (1 child)
Drying, freezing, pickling, laying in sugar, fermenting, etc... all valid methods of preserving food. Hell, most of the food that is about to go to waste could be bought up and transformed into something that can be stored for a much longer time.
Also, alot of food is thrown away because it looks less perfect for sale (in Europe we had a time that cucumbers that were only a little curved were discarded and not sold. I'm glad they stopped that madness).
(Score: 2) by takyon on Friday August 30 2019, @12:04PM
Food preservation was a more common household task before electric refrigeration and supermarkets came along. Convenience has made us complacent, and increased food waste.
There has been a bit of a resurgence in things like fermented foods, and there are also new stores dedicated to selling "ugly" produce and products beyond the sell by date. New technologies could also help reduce waste:
LiquiGlide Slippery Coating Coming Inside Norwegian Mayo Bottles [soylentnews.org]
Startup's New Sprays Promise Longer-Lasting Fruit, Fewer Pesticides [npr.org]
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