Addressing the problem of loss and waste of food

Loss and waste of foods have ever remained a cause for serious concern. This has prompted the United Nations (UN) to observe the International Day of Awareness of Food Loss and Waste (IDAFLW) since 2020. Clearly, the global attention to this critical issue was belated. Even after the UN General Assembly proclaimed September 29 as the IDAFLW and co-convened by the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), there has hardly been any progress in reducing loss and waste of food at the time of observing the sixth edition of the day. One-third of the food produced globally is lost or wasted until now.

Raising the international community's awareness of food loss and waste can make a huge difference in availability of food for those who need it most. The Sustainable Development Goal Target 12.3 aims at halving per capita food waste at the retail and consumer levels by 2030 and cut food losses during harvest and post harvest periods all along the supply chain. These include transportation, storage and distribution among the consumers at affordable prices.

Happily, a conference titled "Towards Zero Food Waste and Loss: Building a Food Value Chain in Bangladesh" was jointly organised by the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD), the embassy of Denmark in Bangladesh, the World Bank (WB) and the FAO. The title of the conference speaks for itself. But the food losses sustained by this country are little higher at 34 per cent than the global rate. The loss amounts to 4.0 per cent of its GDP. Studies show that 8.0-15 per cent paddy is lost after harvest and 20-40 per cent vegetables wasted. The combined loss is valued at $2.4 billion annually.

A study titled "Bangladesh Food Loss and Waste Diagnostic" unveiled at the conference reports that of the 34 per cent food losses, the share of rice is 23 per cent, fish 36 per cent and mango 29 per cent. Bangladesh can ill afford such losses of food. A lack of proper storage facilities for perishable produce is largely to blame. Last year the country produced more onions than it needs and yet it had to import this tunicate bulb because of post-harvest losses. Apart from the direct economic loss, its implication is far-reaching.

Roughly, a little over one-third of agricultural land on an average could be spared on-farm activities, avoid greenhouse gas emission and environmental degradation. Yet the output would be the same had there been no such losses. The shortfall of supply in the value chain triggers inflation of agricultural commodities in question. While food waste is more common in rich and developed countries, food loss is a major concern for poorer parts of the world. However, the rich segment of society in underdeveloped nations is also prone to waste food.

In countries like Bangladesh known for their vulnerabilities to climate change, stemming losses of agricultural produce is a prerequisite for their food security. Production alone is no guarantee for ensuring this. Involved in the system are storage facilities, transportation and distribution. This year's potato cultivation has exposed the policy failure of the agriculture ministry. Cropping of any farm produce should not be overwhelming.

Even then production of a popular crop like potato in excess could be fairly disposed of if only farmers were guided to follow the best of agricultural practices. This starts with improved seeds and ends with maintenance of phytosanitary standards. There are demands for potato in many countries. But unless issues like phytosanitary concerns are addressed, export of potato or other vegetables will be impossible. Thus the importance of storage facilities, modern cold storage to be precise, comes to the fore. The cold storages are in the private sector. Owners of those cold storages can dictate terms in the bargain because of the perishable nature of the crops.

The government has warehouses for stocking staples like rice. It should have its own cold storages for farm produce, particularly for perishable ones. The stages at which onions, potato, fruits and vegetables go to waste are well known. So, the transportation of delicate produce must also follow the rules to avoid degradation of qualities. If adequate modern cold storages are built by the government, the unilateral diktat of the private sector can be brought to an end. Then a pool of modern cargo vehicles can be developed under the supervision of the Bangladesh Road Transport Corporation (BRTC) in order to facilitate transportation of perishable commodities.

The loss sustained every year outweighs the cost of developing facilities for storage and transportation. Infrastructure development is nothing temporary as the facilities continue to serve for years together. The country's population will grow until 2050 and demand for food will also increase. With the climate change, challenges will be more daunting to feed the population. Smart agriculture can meet the challenges with doubling or tripling production of crops. Agricultural land will shrink further on account of housing for more people. Then there is the threat of the country losing 17 per cent of its territory to sea level rising. All this unfolds an ominous prospect for this land-scarce country. This country can ill afford loss or waste of food.

nilratanhalder2000@yahoo.com