Why Waste Food?

by Andrew F. Smith

Overview

About one-third of all food grown for human consumption is lost or discarded every year, despite financial, environmental, and ethical reasons not to waste food. We grow enough food to adequately feed everyone on the planet, yet hundreds of millions of people suffer from hunger, malnutrition, or food insecurity. Together, this food waste accounts for about eight percent of the world’s total greenhouse gas emissions. So, if wasting food is such a patently bad idea, why do we discard so much? In Why Waste Food?, Andrew F. Smith investigates one of today’s most pressing topics, examining the causes of avoidable food waste across the supply chain and highlighting the ways in which everyone can do something to tackle this global concern.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781789143447
Publisher:	Reaktion Books, Limited
Publication date:	09/17/2020
Series:	Food Controversies
Edition description:	New edition
Pages:	176
Product dimensions:	4.75(w) x 7.75(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

Andrew F. Smith teaches at the New School in New York City. He is the author or editor of thirty-two books, including the Oxford Encyclopedia on Food and Drink in America. 

Table of Contents

Prologue 7

1 War On Food Waste 13

2 Farmed Waste 33

3 Manufactured Waste 49

4 Supermarket Waste 69

5 Restaurant Waste 90

6 Consumer Waste 118

7 Food-Related Waste 136

Epilogue 163

References 169

Food Waste Resources 179

Index 185

Editorial Reviews

"In this fact-filled account, Smith surveys the food system from farm to fork, describing the many ways in which food is wasted, even though wasting food is in no one’s interest, while finding reasons for hope through the many community and corporate initiatives to reduce waste. The book contains some jaw-dropping statistics."

OxVeg News

A no-nonsense practical guide for solving one of the most pressing agricultural, environmental, and social problems of our time. Smith outlines the enormity of the problem—on farms, in our homes, in retail and food service—and warns that there is no silver bullet to making sure food is valued, preserved, and appreciated. All of us—policy makers, businesses, producers, and eaters—need to be part of the solution.

Danielle Nierenberg