13 Million South Africans Go Hungry over Food Waste

South Africa wastes about 10.3 million tons of food per year showing the disconnect between food security and food supply in the country with about 10 million adults and 2.8 million children experiencing this.

The growing world population needs food but the environmental impacts of food production, inefficient agricultural land use and the contradiction of rising levels of both hunger and food waste call for a changing approach to getting nutrition to the world sustainably.

University of Stellenbosch Business School senior lecturer in strategy and sustainability Dr Jako Volschenk Hassaid said a growing population was only a part of the problem and the types of food produced and consumed needs some serious rethink.

He also highlighted that the world population has doubled in the past 50 years to 7.9 billion also that global food production will need to increase by 70% to feed a projected world population of 9.7 billion by 2050.

Hassaid further explained that food production especially meat is a huge driver of various environmental problems.  That livestock farming produces more carbon emissions than growing vegetables, fruits and grains with livestock responsible for 15% of greenhouse gas emissions responsible for global warming also about 80% of agricultural land is used for livestock but delivers 20% of the world’s available supply of calories.

Done by Lucille Dyosi


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