Tracking Progress to Halve Global Food Waste: UNEP Publishes the 2024 Food Waste Index Report (2024)

The UNEP Food Waste Index Report 2024 reveals that the world wasted 1.05 billion tonnes of food in 2022, and the FSSC 22000 Food Safety Certification Scheme’s new requirement aims to significantly reduce food loss and waste across the food industry, aligning with SDG target 12.3 to halve global food waste by 2030.

Tracking Progress to Halve Global Food Waste: UNEP Publishes the 2024 Food Waste Index Report (1)

To catalyze essential action towards reducing food waste and achieving SDG target 12.3 —halving global food waste by 2030 — it is imperative to grasp the extent of food waste and its consequences. Published by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) in March, the Food Waste Index Report 2024 provides an update on the scale of food wasted worldwide.

In 2022, the world wasted 1.05 billion tonnes of food, amounting to one-fifth (19%) of food available to consumers being wasted at the retail, food service, and household levels, states the report. That is in addition to the 13% of the world’s food lost in the supply chain, as estimated by FAO, from post-harvest up to but excluding retail.

Linking Industry Standards to Food Waste Reduction

These findings confirm the relevance of the Additional Requirement on Food Loss and Waste (FLW) which Foundation FSSC added to its Food Safety Certification Scheme FSSC 22000 as part of Version 6, published in April 2023. The Additional Requirement necessitates organizations holding and seeking FSSC 22000 certification to determine and implement measures to reduce both food loss and food waste.

But what exactly do we mean when discussing FLW? According to Appendix 1 of the FSSC 22000 Scheme Version 6, food loss occurs before food reaches the consumer due to issues in the supply chain during the production, processing, storage, and distribution phases. Food waste refers to food that is fit for consumption but consciously discarded at the retail or consumption levels.

Global Food Waste by Sectors and FSSC's Response

While most of the world’s food waste comes from households, the food service sector (27.56%) and the retail sector (12.44%) still account for 40% of global food waste, states the Food Waste Index Report.

As FSSC 22000 is a Food Safety Management System covering sectors that are prone to food loss, i.e., the manufacturing, transport, and storage of food, as well as to food waste, i.e., retail and catering, we chose to leverage our influence on global food safety through FSSC 22000 and deliver a significant positive impact toward SDG target 12.3.

“We see Food Loss and Waste as a matter of raw material efficiency,” says Foundation FSSC CEO Aldin Hilbrands and explains: “Through our FSSC 20000 Scheme, we want to enable companies to maximize safe food production and minimize food loss and waste. These concepts are two sides of the same coin that are not conflicting but complementary. By maximizing efficiency while minimizing waste, we add to a sustainable food system and help create a better world through improving food security, economic viability while reducing climate impact.”

Conforming with the FSSC 22000 Additional Requirement on Food Loss and Waste (FLW), Certified Organizations in all food chain categories but packaging materials, shall have a documented policy and objectives in place that detail their strategy to reduce FLW across all aspects of its operations and the related supply chain. This requirement, explained in detail in the FSSC Insights Webinar on Food Loss and Waste, underscores the importance of organizational measures to manage the donation of edible products and ensure that these products are safe to consume.

The FLW requirement also considers non-edible food parts, such as eggshells or banana peels, as a type of FLW to encourage organizations to adopt a comprehensive approach to waste reduction and resource utilization. The FSSC Guidance Document on Food Loss and Waste makes corresponding suggestions. For example, instead of sending non-edible parts to landfills, organizations could investigate options such as composting or co-digestion, where these materials are repurposed for energy generation or soil enrichment.

While these measures may seem local, they can compound global benefits when multiplied. With more than 35,000 FSSC 22000 Certified Organizations and roughly 85% of FSSC 22000 certifications within the food manufacturing sector, the first audits to Version 6 started from 1 April 2024 onwards, and all FSSC 22000 Certified Organizations must complete the Version 6 upgrade audit before 31 March 2025. Consequently, all FSSC 22000 Certified Organizations will have integrated the FLW requirements under FSSC 22000 Scheme Version 6 as of 1 April 2025.

Environmental and Humanitarian Impacts of Food Waste

According to the UNEP Food Waste Index Report, food loss and waste generate 8-10% of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, almost five times the total emissions from the aviation sector. With global households alone contributing to these GHG emissions by wasting one billion meals of edible food every day, 783 million people are hungry, and a third of humanity faces food insecurity.

Looking at these alarming numbers, the Foundation is all the more committed to helping the consumer goods industry reduce food loss and waste, mitigating both harmful environmental and disastrous humanitarian impacts. Our commitment to deliver against the global SDG target of halving food loss and waste by 2030 goes beyond certification.

Collaborative Solutions and Partnerships

In alignment with The Food Waste Index Report’s emphasis on the importance of multi-stakeholder collaboration as a solution for global food waste reduction, FSSC became a member of the Dutch Food Waste Free United platform in 2022. The platform brings together various stakeholders across the food supply chain, allowing FSSC to understand the industry’s needs better and share knowledge, resources, and guidance to tackle food waste collectively.

On a global scale, FSSC has formed strategic affiliations with the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) and the World Packaging Organization (WPO) on food safety and packaging to reduce FLW and produce safer food worldwide. Through planned collaborative efforts with WPO and its members, FSSC is further determined to explore innovative solutions to reduce food loss and waste from a packaging design perspective, thereby intending less food to be discarded at the retail and consumption level, advance sustainability practices in the packaging industry, and further deliver a positive impact to the consumer goods industry.

Learn more about FSSC 22000Access the full UNEP report

Tracking Progress to Halve Global Food Waste: UNEP Publishes the 2024 Food Waste Index Report (2024)

FAQs

Tracking Progress to Halve Global Food Waste: UNEP Publishes the 2024 Food Waste Index Report? ›

The UNEP Food Waste Index Report 2024 reveals that the world wasted 1.05 billion tonnes of food in 2022, and the FSSC 22000 Food Safety Certification Scheme's new requirement aims to significantly reduce food loss and waste across the food industry, aligning with SDG target 12.3 to halve global food waste by 2030.

How much food is wasted globally in 2024? ›

Over a third of all food produced (around 2.5 billion tons) is lost or wasted each year. One third of this occurs in the food production stage. Boston Consulting Group (BCG) estimates this wasted food is worth $230 billion.

What is food waste tracking? ›

It can monitor the amount of food lost throughout the production chain from storage to plate waste.

Where does the US rank in food waste? ›

Shockingly, one-third of all food produced for human consumption is wasted each year and this alone is responsible for 8% of global greenhouse gas emissions. The US is the third-highest country in the world for food waste per capita, behind China and India.

What is the EPA 2030 food waste goal? ›

For food waste, the goal aims to reduce the amount of food leaving the human food supply chain by 50% by 2030.

What foods are most wasted? ›

Potatoes, bread slices and apples are the most wasted foods by quantity, while salads are thrown away in the greatest proportion.

What are 5 facts about food waste? ›

U.S. Wasted Food Facts:
  • 40% of all food in the United States is wasted.
  • 25% of all freshwater we consume goes to produce food we never eat.
  • 4% of the oil we consume goes to produce food we never eat.
  • $166 billion (retail value of preventable waste) is spent on the food we never eat.

Is tracking food good or bad? ›

Food tracking raises awareness

Once you start tracking your food, you become aware of the good —and bad— that you've been putting into your body. In addition, tracking your food provides the awareness you need to stay on top of the nasty habits you've tried to ignore for so long.

What are 10 ways to reduce food waste? ›

10 ways to cut your food waste
  • Check your fridge temperature. It should be between 0-5C. ...
  • Use your fridge wisely. Some foods keep better outside the fridge. ...
  • Love your list. ...
  • Water your veg. ...
  • Freeze your 5-a-day… ...
  • 6. … ...
  • Measure your portions. ...
  • Sauces and dips.

How to reduce food waste globally? ›

  1. Put your food waste to use. Instead of throwing away your food scraps, compost them. ...
  2. Respect food. Food connects us all. ...
  3. Support local food producers. ...
  4. Keep fish populations afloat. ...
  5. Use less water. ...
  6. Keep our soils and water clean. ...
  7. Eat more pulses and veggies. ...
  8. Sharing is caring.
Sep 29, 2020

What is the #1 source of food waste in the US? ›

Grocery Store Food Waste

About 30 percent of food in American grocery stores is thrown away. US retail stores generate about 16 billion pounds of food waste every year. Wasted food from the retail sector is valued at about twice the amount of profit from food sales.

Who is the biggest food waste in the world? ›

  • China. The gross amount of food waste in China exceeds 91 million tons. ...
  • India. The gross amount of food waste for India exceeds 68 million tons. ...
  • United States. The gross amount of food waste in the US exceeds 19 million tons. ...
  • Japan. ...
  • Germany. ...
  • France. ...
  • United Kingdom. ...
  • Russia.

What vegetable creates a lot of waste on the farm? ›

By far the highest waste, at 113 percent (meaning more is lost than sold), occurred with romaine hearts, where all of the outer leaves were left in the fields. “Anyone who has watched a romaine hearts harvest has had their heart broken,” said Gunders, who was not involved with the study.

What is the Zero Food Waste Act? ›

The Zero Food Waste Act would support state, local, and tribal communities making the policy changes and infrastructure investments needed to develop a circular food economy, invest in community health and agricultural jobs, and curb methane emissions.

What is the US doing to stop food waste? ›

USDA is doing its part to help make preventing food waste the first-best option for farmers, businesses, organizations, and consumers. A large number of USDA programs contribute to this objective, ranging from those supporting market and distributional efficiencies to those educating consumers about safe food storage.

How much food is wasted each year globally? ›

That's about 1.3 billion tons a year. The world loses an astounding quantity of food every year. It blows your mind but a third of all food for human consumption in the world is lost or wasted.

How much food will be wasted by 2030? ›

Each year, 1.6 billion tons of food, worth $1.2 trillion, are lost or wasted.

How much more food will be in 2050? ›

Under medium population growth, production around the world would have to increase to 14,060 trillion crop calories to feed 9.75 billion people in 2050. This is a 47-percent increase in crop calories from a 2011 baseline.

Is food waste increasing or decreasing? ›

And the problem keeps growing. Over the past 50 years, greenhouse gas emissions from food waste have increased more than 300 percent, and are projected to increase another 400 percent by mid-century if current dietary and waste trends continue [24].

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