More than half of all food produced in Canada is lost or wasted, report says

[TheIronMaiden]

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toron...vest-1.4981728

The report, entitled "The Avoidable Crisis of Food Waste," was released Thursday morning by Second Harvest, a Toronto agency that collects surplus food throughout the supply chain and distributes it to agencies ranging from shelters and drop-in centres to breakfast programs and summer camps.

According to the research, some 4.82 million tonnes of food, or nearly $21 billion worth, is lost or wasted during the processing and manufacturing process. Some 2.38 million tonnes of food, or more than $10 billion worth, is lost at the consumer level.

https://globalnews.ca/news/4857582/c...te-study-2019/

The study released Thursday is the world’s first to measure food waste using data from industry and other sources instead of estimates, said Martin Gooch of Value Chain Management International, which conducted the study.

Value Chain works with agriculture, aquaculture, marine and food industries to make them more profitable.

“What we did was actually go to industry and [said], ‘Give us primary data,'” Gooch said. “This is the first time anywhere in the world that anyone’s gone out and got primary data that connects production with consumers.”

Canadian kitchens are also conspicuous wastrels, responsible for 21 per cent of avoidable waste. That’s about $1,700 per household in a country in which four million people struggle for regular meals.

Hospitals, restaurants and institutions contribute 13 per cent of avoidable food waste. Retail outlets are close behind at 12 per cent.

Farmers waste only six per cent of the usable food they produce. Distributors waste even less at five per cent.

[stampsx2]

This is a much much bigger concern than the trendy plastic straw issue. Restaurants and grocery stores throw out food that’s still good because of liability.

It raises prices for consumers so that business’s could recover their costs. When you buy apples you’re paying for those apples and the apples that the business owner will be throwing out.

58 per cent of all food produced in Canada — 35.5 million tonnes — is lost or wasted. It takes energy to produce, transport and store this wasted food. Carbon and methane are produced during production and as waste when it goes to a landfill. Methane is 30 times more powerful as a greenhouse gas compared to carbon.

The plastic straw fad is an absolute joke compared to what’s going on in food waste. Worrying about plastic straws is the equivalent of picking up crumbs at a landfill. There’s a much bigger issue out there.

[TheIronMaiden]

Originally Posted by stampsx2

This is a much much bigger concern than the trendy plastic straw issue. Restaurants and grocery stores throw out food that’s still good because of liability.

It raises prices for consumers so that business’s could recover their costs. When you buy apples you’re paying for those apples and the apples that the business owner will be throwing out.

58 per cent of all food produced in Canada — 35.5 million tonnes — is lost or wasted. It takes energy to produce, transport and store this wasted food. Carbon and methane are produced during production and as waste when it goes to a landfill. Methane is 30 times more powerful as a greenhouse gas compared to carbon.

The plastic straw fad is an absolute joke compared to what’s going on in food waste. Worrying about plastic straws is the equivalent of picking up crumbs at a landfill. There’s a much bigger issue out there.

I fail to see how these two things are in opposition to one another.

[Fuzz]

If you look at the types of foods thrown away, it is mostly fruits and vegetables. Nobody throws out half a bag of chips or half a chocolate bar. The problem is our food choices. We could reduce food waste to near zero if we all just made better choices around what we eat.

[OutOfTheCube]

I see you've met my toddlers.

[stampsx2]

As i say this, the 20-something who stood behind me in line at ikea and didn’t want to get ice cream in a bowl because she would have to use a plastic spoon, just threw out the rest (half) of her ice cream with the cone. She’s from California apparently just visiting a friend.

That ice cream you threw out took no energy to produce at all.

We have to fight climate change but only if it doesn’t affect our lifestyle.

[stampsx2]

Originally Posted by Fuzz

If you look at the types of foods thrown away, it is mostly fruits and vegetables. Nobody throws out half a bag of chips or half a chocolate bar. The problem is our food choices. We could reduce food waste to near zero if we all just made better choices around what we eat.

Wrong, very wrong. Old dutch and doritoes throw out any chips they have in the warehouse that they couldn’t sell or were over produced or have an expiry date that won’t get the bag out in time onto the shelf. They strictly will not let you take any bag on it’s way out of the warehouse even if not expired.

Fast food restaurants also dump burgers and fries that weren’t sold within a certain amount of time but are still good but not “fresh”

Take a wild guess what Tim Hortons does with their good coffee that’s not fresh.

[PsYcNeT]

Retailers need to offer more single-item purchases (ideally without the "didn't buy a bag" punitive cost).

I don't always need 10 goddamn pounds of potatoes when I want to make some latkes.

[stampsx2]

Originally Posted by TheIronMaiden

I fail to see how these two things are in opposition to one another.

How is one opposed to the other? It’s not. I’m making a point that it’s mind boggling that plastic straws are all the hype and rage when there’s far worse polluters.

I hate how climate change is a fad. Nobody actually wants to make a real change. If they did then drying clothes on a clothes line would be much more common. But it’s not.

[TheIronMaiden]

Originally Posted by stampsx2

How is one opposed to the other it’s not. I’m making a point that it’s mind boggling that plastic straws are all the hype and rage when there’s far worse polluters.

I hate how climate change is a fad. Nobody actually wants to make a real change. If they did then drying clothes on a clothes line would be much more common. But it’s not.

Speak for yourself.

[stampsx2]

Originally Posted by TheIronMaiden

Speak for yourself.

Ok maybe that’s a bit extreme. More frustration talking there. I should of said, the changes we need to make require us to make changes to the way we live. Most people probably wouldn’t do that.

Example: Al Gore gets rid of his heated pool.
Example: Victoria invests in sewage treatment plants to not dump raw sewage and other waste like micro plastics into the ocean.

[blankall]

I've worked in several restaurants, and all were very concerned with food waste and efficiency. It was very rare that an unserved did item was thrown out. If that did happen, it was typically spoilage, and the person who's overordered got an ear full. The amount of food wasted on that side was a very tiny fraction of the food that customers didn't eat. I worked in the dishpit and I'd have to throw out a half dozen massive garbage bags of food waste from customers every night.

Perhaps the restaurant is partially to blame for purposely selling large portions? However I in no way saw this pre-customer side waste.

[llwhiteoutll]

Originally Posted by TheIronMaiden

Speak for yourself.

CBC just did a poll that shows no one really wants to pay to fight climate change, something like 50% of respondents wouldn't pay more than $100 in extra taxes to do so.

Just like the folks in BC who are complaining about high gas prices, it seems a good portion of people simply want to discuss how bad things are and how we should do something, until it comes to opening their wallets.

In the case of food waste and banning plastic straws, guess which should be the priority and which will actually be addressed because it costs less or is easier to do?

[TheIronMaiden]

Originally Posted by stampsx2

Ok maybe that’s a bit extreme. I should of said, the changes we need to make require us to make changes to the way we live. Most people probably wouldn’t do that.

Example: Al Gore gets rid of his heated pool.
Example: Victoria invests in sewage treatment plants to not dump raw sewage and other waste like micro plastics into the ocean.

I agree, but I would tweak that statement slightly, and say the changes we need to make require me to make changes to the way I live. I can't spend all day worrying about other people. But reading these articles made it clear to myself that the amount of food I waste is unacceptable. I will certainly think about how much I am buying next time I am at the grocery store, and I will avoid processed foods because processing and manufacturing are the largest sources of avoidable waste, accounting for 43 per cent of the Canadian total.

[PsYcNeT]

Also, outside of obvious needs for food safety/expiry concerns (and this shouldn't even be part of the discussion), you kind of just get in to a Seinfeldian "muffin stumps" situation.

[TheIronMaiden]

Originally Posted by llwhiteoutll

CBC just did a poll that shows no one really wants to pay to fight climate change, something like 50% of respondents wouldn't pay more than $100 in extra taxes to do so.

Just like the folks in BC who are complaining about high gas prices, it seems a good portion of people simply want to discuss how bad things are and how we should do something, until it comes to opening their wallets.

In the case of food waste and banning plastic straws, guess which should be the priority and which will actually be addressed because it costs less or is easier to do?

I believe that that climate decisions need to happen at the consumer level. The food waste question is one that happens in our own kitchens, and when we go shopping. I try not to worry to much about political choices as much as I worry about what I can control.

[CaptainCrunch]

I think that in terms of restaurants it comes down to portion size control. That has to create a ton of wastage



With fast food its the size of the supersize option. You see a ton of wasted food there.


In your own kitchen your responsible for your own portions, but too many people cook or buy in larger quantities then they need and then never touch their left overs.

[stampsx2]

Originally Posted by TheIronMaiden

I agree, but I would tweak that statement slightly, and say the changes we need to make require me to make changes to the way I live. I can't spend all day worrying about other people. But reading these articles made it clear to myself that the amount of food I waste is unacceptable. I will certainly think about how much I am buying next time I am at the grocery store, and I will avoid processed foods because processing and manufacturing are the largest sources of avoidable waste, accounting for 43 per cent of the Canadian total.

I’m not a climate change activist. They should be making the biggest changes and donations.

However i’ve made huge changes to reduce more than arguably any of them. Even as far as converting my front lawn from grass to rocks to save water. Calgary is a dry climate, we overwater here to keep our grass green. As far as food goes, i throw out almost nothing.

[PostandIn]

Why can’t I get half a loaf of bread? Or half a baguette? Who ever uses all the parsley that comes in a bunch?

[CaptainCrunch]

I bought a bag or organic apples on Friday which had about 12 apples in it, by Sunday they were already turning bad and I ended up tossing half of them.


I mean in terms of bread etc from above, I don't think people realize that bread lasts more then a couple of days.