Better packaging, less waste

If the food industry knows it, but the public doesn’t, then it may need to be communicated more effectively.

According to an article in The Economist on 17th December, around one third of all food production is wasted. That’s an enormous 1,300 million tonnes. The problems stretch from harvesting, transport and storage to shape, shelf life and excess purchase.

Packaging is a great preserver. Vacuum packaging is apparently working wonders for meat and dairy products. Sainsbury’s reduced wastage for some meat lines by half last year. Tesco has reportedly calculated that a tonne of waste generates 3.5 tonnes of carbon dioxide, while an extra tonne of packaging causes under 2 tonnes of emissions.

So, less packaging does not necessarily mean less waste.