The scourge of food waste

Despite a quarter of Bangladesh's population suffering from malnourishment, large amounts of food are regularly wasted which otherwise could have helped ameliorate to some extent the problem of nutrition in the country. A recent seminar, jointly held by Right to Food Bangladesh and Christian Aid, highlighted the ways in which food is generally wasted and proposed methods to reduce such waste efficiently.

According to Food and Agricultural Organisation's 2011 report, approximately 1.3 billion tonnes of food are wasted every year around the globe. Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies claims that people in the country waste more than 10 per cent of their food consumption daily. Some of the suggestions made by experts in the seminar to mitigate food waste were to raise awareness, control food production and promote a balanced diet.

Around 98 percent of the world's hungry reside in developing nations. Bangladesh, being an LDC with increasing economic growth and population, is thus particularly vulnerable to the challenges posed by food scarcity. Given that more than 63 million people live below the poverty line, tackling food waste should be considered a strategic solution to the nation's development taking into account both the economic and social impact. If the current trend of food consumption is not reversed, then there could be severe consequences in the near future, including the need to produce more food at higher costs due to the effects of climate change. Furthermore, as an agrarian economy, Bangladesh ought to be more proactive in eliminating food waste, especially at the pre-consumption stage.