The Food Waste Problem, so what can we do to prevent this?
We tend to not realize how much food we throw out and the impact it has on our environment. Scroll down to find out more.
The Problem of Food Waste
About How Much Food is Wasted in the US?
- In the US we waste about 30-40% of food and out of that large percent, the USDA suggests that 31% is being wasted at the retail and consumer levels. If you were to look at that from an economical standpoint that is 133 billion pounds of food wasted and 161 billion dollars worth back in 2010. (4)
- 8 in 10 Americans will reduce their food waste but this is not occurring, in 2017 more than 40 million tons of food waste were produced. Plus there was an analysis from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) that found in 2000 Americans produce an average of 0.6 pounds of food waste each day. Then in 2017, it increased to wasting 0.69 pounds of food each day.(2)
What are the Main Causes of Food Waste in Households?
Food Spoilage
Close to two-thirds of food wasted at home is due to food not being used before it goes bad aka food spoilage. A lot of the times food that goes bad is because of improper storage, lack of visibility in refrigerators and, partially used ingredients. (3)
Over-Preparing
The remaining third of household food waste is the result of people cooking or serving too much food. Over time cooking portions have increased and larger meals often include more food than people can finish in one sitting. The Cornell Food and Brand lab found that since 2006, serving sizes in the classic cookbook The Joy of Cooking has increased by 36 percent. In addition, people often forget to eat leftovers and or don't feel like eating them in the next few days, so they end up throwing them away. (3)
Label Confusion
20% of food waste is because there is confusion in labeling. The reason why there is confusion is that there are many terms such as "Best By" and "Sell by". This is not regulated at the federal level so people get confused with items and so they don't chance expired food so it gets thrown out. (1)
Over Buying
When there are deals in the store it gets people to buy more products than they really need. Items that were bought in bulk may expire more quickly than one realizes and before you know it you have to throw it out. (3)
Poor Planning
Without shopping lists and meal plans for the week, people tend to overestimate what they need. So, they buy more food and ingredients than needed. Which leads to an increased chance of wasting more food. (3)
Why is Food Waste Bad?
With all of this waste being thrown out, it goes to several landfills where food is the single largest category of materials placed in these landfills. When these food items are in landfills it produces a greenhouse gas called methane. This source of methane from landfills accounts for 14.1% and is the 3rd largest source of methane that humans have caused as of 2017. (4)
If you want to learn more about the problems of food waste and other factors that contribute click below for another resource:
Survey Results
Introduction
A survey about food waste was conducted by a School of Environmental Studies student in late April of 2021. A little over 1500 people respond to questions as of May 3rd. People who responded were from Lakeville, Apple Valley, Rosemount, Eagan, Burnsville, and Farmington area. However, there were also some people who responded who were from St.Paul, Savage, Inver Grove Heights, Oronoco, Elko, Bloomington, Minneapolis, Stillwater, New Market, Shoreview, Holcombe (WI), and even a person from the UK. Here is what the survey shows food about food waste.
About how many food items do you throw out each week because it has been expired?
Total Responses as of 5/3/2021: 1,515
0 Items: 342
1-4 Items: 1101
5-10 items: 69
15 or more items: 3
Do you throw away your vegetable scraps?
Total Responses as of 5/3/2021: 1,515
Yes: 1050
No: 203
Sometimes: 262
Do you have a compost bin?
Total Responses as of 5/3/2021: 1,513
Yes: 325
No: 1,118
Note: Some may drop off their compost at composting locations near their households.
Would you donate food knowing it is about to expire?
Total Responses as of 5/3/2021: 1,515
Yes: 1062
No: 99
Maybe: 354
Knowing food is about to expire would you take donations?
Total Responses as of 5/3/2021: 1,511
Yes: 802
No: 709
Short Analysis
Some of the shocking results were that 72.7% wastes 1-4 food items each week due to expiration. That is about 52-208 items per household that will end up in a landfill which could have been prevented if people were more aware. When it comes to throwing vegetable scraps away 69.3% of the people responded that they throw away their vegetable scraps. About 79% of people don’t have compost bins. This is a large number because it means that our community is contributing to the emissions of methane in landfills. This could be reduced if more people started to compost because it is more beneficial to the environment than vegetable scraps sitting in landfills.
Solutions
Households Solutions
There are many ways to reduce food waste in your life. The first thing you can do is plan ahead and make a list of items you will actually need and stick to the list. You can buy ugly produce. Ugly produce is any fruit or vegetable that looks weird in shape. It is okay if they have a deformity it will still taste the same and it doesn’t mean that they are rotten. When in the kitchen remember to keep your fridge below 40F and freezers should be at 0 F. By keeping food items cold can help expand their life. Also by keeping cut veggies and or fruit in the fridge will keep them fresher. Another good tip is to store your food in a cold place after 2 hours. Also, keep track of the expiration dates. If you know you have more food than what you are going to eat, you can try donating to a food shelf. Another big tip to remember is to learn about food dating because there can be confusion when it comes to expiration dates. Other things you can do at home is to have competition with your friends to see who can reduce the most waste, or have competitions where you make different food with leftovers. If you make more food then plan to share it with your neighbors. (2)
Composting
Composting is great because back in 2010 composting resulted in the recovery of 30 million tons of waste. (4) The way composting works is it breaks down organics such as leaves, fruit/vegetable scraps, and other organic material which creates compost. Compost adds nutrients to plant growth and is beneficial for gardens. The major benefit is the compost when added to soil changes its structure, its ability to hold oxygen and water, and its capacity to absorb certain nutrient ions. It improves soils that are too sandy to hold water or contain too much clay to allow oxygen to penetrate. Composting can be found in people's homes but it also can be found in communities. When creating compost at home one can use a small composting bin where kitchen wastes except meats and fats are mixed with grass clippings, small branches, shredded newspapers, or other coarse, organic debris. The reason why meat is often omitted is that it can give off bad odors. It can attract rats and other pests. For composting to work efficiently, the materials are layered, with woody materials, grasses, kitchen waste, and with soil alternating. (1)
Composting for Beginners | The Dirt | Better Homes & Gardens
Composting in Dakota County
You can use any container to collect organics in your house. Reuse a container like an ice cream bucket, coffee container, or you can purchase a kitchen compost bucket at local stores or online
The first thing after getting a container is to line the container with a paper bag or certified compostable bag, just make sure it has the BPI (Biodegradable Product Institue) logo.
Then people can take the bagged organics to a drop-off site. Take a free BPI-certified compostable bag and start collecting again.(3)
Locations you can also drop off food scraps
- Dakota Lodge, Thompson County Park , 1200 Stassen Road, West St. Paul
- Holland Lake Trailhead, Lebanon Hills Regional Park , 1100 Cliff Road, Eagan
- The Mulch Store , 16454 Blaine Ave. E, Rosemount (Empire Township), Monday-Friday 7:30 a.m.–4:30 p.m. Saturday hours vary seasonally. Check The Mulch Store website or call 651-423-4401.
- Lakeville Water Treatment Facility , 18400 Ipava Ave., Lakeville
- Hastings Transportation Shop , 900 County Road 47, Hasting
For more information on composting click on the buttons below:
MN Freegan Pantry
Minnesota Freegan Pantry is a Facebook Page where people can feel safe posting donations of food that is about to go bad. They won't have to feel guilty throwing out food that is wasted because now there is an option to prevent good food from going to waste. There is no judgment in this group when people take donations. The goal of this group is to try and prevent the number of food items that go in the trash. So if you have eggs, milk, fruits, and vegetables that are near their expiration date post them to the Facebook page. Before joining the group one must answer a few questions to secure the safety of others in this group.
To join click below:
