When most Americans hear of food waste, we assume it does not affect us, the people around us, and even more out there, our future. We maybe even assume it is something that only third world countries are affected by. But in order to get a better understanding of what food waste is and how it is in fact changing our world and how we live, this blog post will hopefully help. Focusing on pointing out a couple food waste facts and statistics, I will also provide you with ways to start the change at home and around your community.

Right now if you are reading this, you are probably at home relaxing or doing things to prepare yourself for the busy week ahead. But before going to the grocery store to get your food for the week, you check your fridge and pantry to see what you need. If you are anything like me, your pantry and fridge are most likely lined with some food products you haven’t touched since last going to the grocery store, or leftovers from that Mexican restaurant you chose to eat at instead of cooking that healthy meal you intended to cook when you bought it. So after throwing all this food you wasted, in the trash…you head to the grocery store to do the same thing.
Food waste is constantly happening and for someone like you and me, the scenario I wrote out above plays a big part, but it is not only you doing the food waste at home. Food waste is happening at restaurants, grocery stores, and all around the world. According to the Food and Agriculture Organization, approximately forty percent of food in the U.S. goes to waste. With that being almost half of the food in the U.S., it makes you stop and think of how exactly you are affecting this problem without even knowing. In the image that I attached with this blog post titled Talkin’ Trash A Guide to Food Waste, it points out that food waste is the number one source of garbage in landfills and it is responsible for seventeen percent of U.S. methane emissions. The image attached offers more learning facts and statistics and is one of my favorite images to show to someone who wants to learn the basics of food waste.
So in ending this blog post, one of the first steps to becoming apart of the Food Waste Project is to focus on what you need in the moment when you are at the grocery store, because you can always go back if you truly need it. This simple step will lead you to feel less guilty when you open your fridge and pantry next Sunday and see that you don’t have to throw anything out. I look forward to continuing to learn and make more changes along with you and the Food Waste Project! Feel free to leave a comment if you have any questions or comments.