Approx 1/3rd of food produced is wasted worldwide
Approx twice the amount of CO2 EQUIVALENT gases are released per tonne of food waste that goes to landfill
APPROX 8% of the world’s emissions are generated from food waste
For every tonne of food waste that goes to land fill, the equivalence of 1.9 tonnes of CO2 is produced in the form of methane. The greenhouse gases produced by food waste in Australian landfill each year is equivalent to the emissions of Australia’s steel and iron ore industries combined!
When food is wasted, food is not the only resource being thrown away; all of the resources that went into creating the food are also being thrown away. This includes the plant or animal food, the water, energy and labour that was used to grow the food.
The cost to the global economy of food waste is significant. Not only is there the cost of the wasted food, but added to this is the cost of disposal and all of the resources (such as packaging) that are disposed along with it. It is estimated that food waste costs the Australian economy around $20 Billion a year.
Several diseases such African swine Fever can be transmitted to pigs from eating food waste. Although there are bans on feeding swill to pigs, there is still a very real risk (similar to the cause 2001 UK outbreak of foot and mouth disease) that imported meat products (the high risk products) find their way to a pig’s trough.
With the world’s population set to double by 2050, real questions are being asked as to how we can feed the world with the same amount of arable land and water resources. With beef production requiring 7KG of feed to produce 1KG of beef, the role of poultry in the diet of the future will likely be more significant.
