“In addition, this would not only save a large volume of water and avoid losses of reactive nitrogen, but it would also preserve other natural resources such as phosphorus, land and energy”.
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There are lots of ways to reduce the level of food waste, he said.
JRC researcher Davy Vanham said: “Theoretically, zero avoidable food waste is a possibility for EU consumers”.
A previous study found that 70 per cent of British food waste ends up in the bin while 11 per cent was found to be flushed down the drain. Romania was the most efficient country, but still threw out the equivalent of an apple per person per day.
The European Union wastes circa 22m tonnes of food a year, with the UK the worst offender, according to a study by European Commission-backed researchers.
He added: “It’s good that this waste is “avoidable” because it means we’re able to do something about it”. “Education in schools would be valuable-and the food production industry is quite cautious-a lot of food is still “good” but is thrown away when it passes its sell-by date,” he points out.
The economic situation of the family also has an effect on food waste, as the cost of food becomes a less significant portion of the household’s daily expenditure, said the team. “With Romania there is less food waste as the population tends to have less money”, Dr Vanham said.
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The blue water – surface and groundwater resources – footprint associated with this avoidable food waste averaged 27 litres per capita per day, which is slightly higher than EU municipal water use. Globally, industrialized nations throw out a staggering 1.5 trillion pounds of food annually. But we need to remember that it isn’t just the consumer who is at fault for food waste. The food production nitrogen footprint was 2.74 kg per capita per year, the same amount used in mineral fertiliser in both the UK and Germany put together. It goes further up the line, to grocery stores and food producers. This is due to greater customer requirements that help in leading to that waste.
