About 14.10 million tonnes of household food waste in Bangladesh in every year, which was about 10.62 million tonnes 2021, according to the "Food Waste Index Report 2024" published by the Nairobi-based United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).
As per report a Bangladeshi person wasted about 82kg (it was 65 kg in 2021) of food in home which is much higher than the United States (73kg), Netherlands (59kg) and Japan (60kg), a UN study has said. However, the report published on Wednesday (27 March 2024).
Unfortunately, the latest Global Hunger Index (GHI) report has said that Bangladesh falls under the "serious" hunger severity category, she scored 20.4 out of 100, ranking 75th out of 107 countries in the index.
However, the study estimates households across all continents wasted over 1 billion meals a day in 2022, while 783 million people were affected by hunger and a third of humanity faced food insecurity.
Bhutan households waste 19kg of food per person per year, which is the least among South Asian countries, followed by India (55kg), Sri Lanka (76kg) and the Maldives households waste 207kg of food per person per year, the highest in the region followed by Pakistan (130kg), Afghanistan (127kg) and Nepal (93kg).
"In 2022 there were 1.05 billion tonnes of food waste generated (including inedible parts), amounting to 132 kilograms per capita and almost one-fifth of all food available to consumers. Out of the total food wasted in 2022, 60 per cent happened at the household level, with food services responsible for 28 per cent and retail 12 per cent," the report stated.
As the latest report puts it, the amount of food wasted in some developed countries by a person in a home per year is 76kg in China, 71kg in Belgium, 61kg in New Zealand, and 33kg in Russia.
The 2024 study co-authored with WRAP, provides the most accurate global estimate on food waste at retail and consumer levels. It provides guidance for countries on improving data collection and suggests best practices in moving from measuring to reducing food waste.
"Food waste is a global tragedy. Millions will go hungry today as food is wasted across the world," said Inger Andersen, executive director of UNEP.
He further added, "Not only is this a major development issue, but the impacts of such unnecessary waste are causing substantial costs to the climate and nature. The good news is we know if countries prioritise this issue, they can significantly reverse food loss and waste, reduce climate impacts and economic losses, and accelerate progress on global goals."
The report said food waste is not just a "rich country" problem, with levels of household food waste differing in observed average levels for high-income, upper-middle, and lower-middle-income countries by just 7kg per capita.
