Tomorrow will be too late. We need to reduce our waste now. Almost every environmental issue we face goes back to overconsumption. In the U.S. alone, 40 percent of food today goes uneaten, according to the National Resources Defense Council. That’s not only the equivalent of $165 billion of food Americans are wasting each year, but there is also the problem of environmental damage caused by its production and disposal.
We are wasting our food, resources, energy and money pointlessly. When was the last time you threw away food? You, too, have been a culprit of damaging the environment.
We created this problem.
We need to fix it for the sake of tomorrow. We always hear about environmental problems across the globe. Rarely do we take the chance to help the environment. Now is the time.
In 2000, roughly 3,800 calories were distributed to each person daily, according to the United States Department of Agriculture. Out of those calories, about 1,000 were lost. That’s about a Big Mac meal with a Coke and French fries wasted every day per person.
Disposed food contaminates the planet. Food waste is a major source of methane. According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, methane is a “potent greenhouse gas with 21 times the global warming potential of carbon dioxide.”
Methane is not the only gas damaging our environment. EPA experts calculate that about 13 percent of the total greenhouse gases in the U.S. are linked to the food industry. Let’s remember that the garbage produced in the U.S. alone could cover the state of Texas two and a half times.
The extensive manufacturing of food also increases the amount of pesticides released in the environment. Pesticides contain other elements that can create environmental damages such as impairment of water quality. Each year, diminishing our consumption could reduce the use of millions of pounds of pesticides.
Some would argue that a growing population means bigger waste. However, this is not reasonable precisely because we have an increasing demand with limited resources and space. More than seven billion people are currently living on this planet, and more will come. It’s unjustifiable that an American citizen wastes about 10 times as much food as someone in Southeast Asia, according to NRDC.
We should fund local campaigns to encourage recycling and turning food waste into compost. By doing this, we can help the soil’s structure and health, reduce the need for artificial fertilizers and increase drought resistance. Plus, we would save money.
For five years, the U.K. has been conducting a public awareness campaign called “Love Food Hate Waste,” which has contributed to an 18-percent reduction in avoidable food waste.
Overconsumption leads to pollution and increases pesticides and greenhouse gases involved in global warming. The needless food production can also negatively affect the environment as companies continue to expand. Making the right decisions when shopping can directly benefit our future. In fact, according to NRDC, 2014 is the “European year against food waste.”
Let’s bring that motto home and make it our own.
[Stephanie Fuenmayor is a UF journalism and political science senior. A version of this column ran on page 7 on 4/21/2014 under the headline "Food waste damages the planet, and we’re to blame"]
