The United Nations and other partners have announced plans of launching a global campaign of reducing food wastage.

The campaign ‘Think.Eat.Save. Reduce Your Foodprint ‘ was launched  yesterday by the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), the UN Food Agriculture Organization (FAO) and partners

The global campaign aims  at reducing  food loss and waste along the entire chain of food production and consumption.

It will seek to involve families, supermarkets, hotel chains, schools, sports and social clubs, the private sector, city mayors and world leaders to reach its food potential. It will also provide simple tips in its website that will allow users to make food waste pledges, and a platform for those running campaigns to exchange ideas and create a global culture of sustainable consumption of food.

“In a world of seven billion people, set to grow to nine billion by 2050, wasting food makes no sense – economically, environmentally and ethically,” said UNEP’s Executive Director, Achim Steiner. “To bring about the vision of a truly sustainable world, we need a transformation in the way we produce and consume our natural resources.”

About one-third of all food produced globally, worth around $1 trillion, gets lost or wasted in food production and consumption systems, according to FAO. Food loss occurs mostly at the production stages – harvesting, processing and distribution – while food waste typically takes place at the retailer and consumer end of the food supply chain.

Other partners involved in the campaign include the UK-based WRAP (Waste and Resources Action Programme) and the Feeding the 5,000 initiative.

By UP