Fiinovation - Reduce Your Foodprint: Think, Eat and Save

Wastage of Food is a crucial issue. For the India alone the numbers seem almost too big to comprehend: more than a tonnes of edible food wasted each year at a cost of billions of rupees. And that's before we consider the enormous amounts of energy and water required to grow, package, process, transport and cook grub that never gets eaten. Faced with these figures, it can feel like we're standing at the foot of an insurmountable mountain. Waste was one of the main issues on food sustainability and security, that on stressed the requirement to do much more, and at a greater pace. So how do we tackle it? Just as every epic expedition is made up of single steps, small changes which we can add up in Fiinovation to get a big improvement when they're scaled up to a national, or even global, level.

One of the major challenges with tackling the problem of edible produce wasted on farms knows the extent of the problem. It's not included in the government's official figures on food waste, although it's likely to be millions of tonnes. According to Fiinovation, the farmers money is going down the drain. One large-scale vegetable farmer we spoke to stress the importance of making small cuts in waste across his entire enterprise. Thanks to the addition of an on-site peeling and processing factory – as well as changing cosmetic standards by retailers – everything is pushed further up the food chain, with more veg going directly to consumers rather than ending up as animal food. 

Quick washing and chilling, along with innovations in packaging and store displays, also help to keep food fresher for longer, both on the supermarket shelf and in our fridges at home. The use of satellite and robotic technology can also provide part of the solution, by ensuring that planting and harvesting is as accurate as possible. Inevitably some crops are left in the field, and the cost of labour doesn't make it worth going back to collect them. Poor planning and back luck with the weather can also lead to produce left to moulder. To address this Fiinovation suggests, a new volunteer movement should be organized for creating the Network in linking with farmers to gather up this extra harvest.

Standing Up Against Food Wastage - Fiinovation

Life would have been much easier if we could only point fingers at others and not admit that we are also a major part of the problem of food wastage. We can blame food wastage on the food processing industry or the agricultural sector, but we the consumers are also a part of the problem. Food wastage is an environmental cost that not only impacts the present generation but the future generations will also have to suffer due to this. Approximately, 750 billion US dollars is the estimated cost of wasted food in this world, which is 6 times the amount spent on development aid around the world. It is criminal to waste food when every day 870 million go to bed hungry.

This year the World Environment Day theme was Think, Eat and Save: Reduce your FoodPrint. Fiinovation is observing its environment fortnight and raising awareness about food wastage. Food wastage not only impacts the food supply but also impact the water supply as food production involves unsustainable use of water. As approximately 98% of the world's hungry lives in the developing countries there is a need to empower people with sufficient amount of food. With this objective in mind emerging nations like India is taking up initiatives like Right to Food that will provide security of food to approximately 67% of the population.

It is estimated that about one third of the food produced around the world is either wasted or lost. The food that is kept uselessly around the world can take up as much as half the size of United States. The current world population is more than 7 billion that is expected to grow up to 9 billion by the 2050, food wastage impacts us economically, environmentally and ethically. Food production involves 25% of all habitable land, consumes 75% of fresh water, is responsible for 80% of deforestation and emits 30% of greenhouse gases.

Taking note of the various food facts, Fiinovation suggests that we should involve ourselves in consumption of foods that have less environmental impacts. Fiinovation designs innovative concepts that involve climate smart agriculture to help reduce environmental impacts. Choosing organic foods is an effective way that consumers can involve themselves to contribute towards this cause. Locally grown food should be chosen to be eaten by consumers as they will limit emissions. Food that is wasted and not eaten gets decomposed in landfills emitting greenhouse gases.

This campaign against food wastage can only be successful if the developed nations become taking it seriously. Every individual has to contribute from their part and THINK about their consumption patterns, take that much to EAT what we require, and SAVE food. If we can reduce the foodprint we can put less pressure on the resources of the planet. We need to find effective ways to maximize the food resources of the world. We need to incorporate sustainable food systems by producing nutritious diets for the people of the world keeping in mind the sustainability factor. Waste products like manure and food scraps should be turned into valuable fertilizers or energy that will help sustainability. The food processing industry and the hospitality sector should take more responsibility towards this initiative. With all these measures the world will become food secure and enable environmental sustainability effective.

The revolution of consciousness is connected to the food revolution.

Rahul Choudhury

Fiinovation