In the event that everyone despises squandering food, why we do it and how might we diminish it? That is what a lot of people do not understand how much food they throw away each day. Food waste is an urgent issue in the United States that needs to be reduce because it impacts the whole environment. By increasing consumers’ knowledge on how to prepare and store food, we can reduce wasting food, and this solution can minimize food waste and create a healthier environment (“ “ ).
Food waste is one the most important and widespread problems in the United States that affects the environment. Most people do not recognize why the waste food every day. Whenever food is waste, everything that went in to delivering, preparing, bunding, transporting that food is also thrown away as well. The excessive amounts of chemicals, energy, and fertilizer along with the twenty five percent of the clean water in the U.S.’s that is used to produce food, will eventually go down the drain. Also most leftovers food riots in landfills where it accounts for approximately 25 percent of the United States methane emissions. This issue is apparent because of the fact that methane is a ground-breaking ozone depleting substance that is more harmful to the environment than carbon dioxide. Therefore, reducing food means we release less methane gas, which is beneficial for the ecosystem (‘Environment Impact”). The problem of food waste is difficult to solve because food is cheap in the United States, and some people are not knowledgeable on how to store food. The majority of Americans surveyed said the feel regretful for throwing away food, yet many do not have time to figure out ways to minimize their waste(“Goldberg”). Overall, we have to reduce food waste because it is the most important problem among the environment.
One of the best solutions to combat food waste is to change consumers’ behavior in terms of buying, preparing, and storing food because consumers are enormous wasters. The problem of food waste can be solved by making a shopping list, using measuring cups to determine the right portions, and knowing where and how to store specific products because more than half percent of the purchasers’ acquisitions are a waste. Furthermore, consumers need a concrete action plan. Buying the right quantities, checking the refrigerator before shopping, and preparing meals with products that are close to their expiration date are the most logical ways for consumers to reduce food waste. One reason people throw away food is because they cooked too much for every single meal and after having prepared too much food, they consider the leftovers too small for storage. Moreover, they do not know that what to do with the leftovers (“Simple Solutions”). They need more information or advice on food storage methods. Additionally, they have to plan their meals for whole week. For example, consumers who decide what to eat each single meals waste more food than those who plan what they are going to eat. By increasing their knowledge about impacts of food wastage, and raising awareness, it would help solve the problem because these factors are helpful to reduce food waste. lastly, they can contribute reducing food waste by buying and cooking specific quantities and using better storage techniques.
Some people may argue that the only way to avoid food waste is donating some food to homeless and poor people. Donating leftovers can reduce food from landfills. It seems reasonable that food waste can only waste money of people who are actually buying or cooking too much. By donating leftovers, we save environment from dirt. Aid of food from mansions and trade can help poor and hungry people. They cannot manage the cost of single dinner for themselves and their family, so feeding hunger people is better than wasting (“Reduce Wasted”). However, the problem with this solution is that food waste cannot be reduced because of the cost. Food donation is important may be difficult to transfer it from one place to another. Foundations have to bear the charge of adapting for assistance, packing, and shipping. Additionally, people do not have time to take their leftovers to feed hungry people. For example, if we donate our leftovers, food could be waste because some people think one person cannot make such an extensive change to reduce food waste, so they throw away their leftovers. It is clear that changing consumers’ behavior is the only solution to the problem.
Finally, wasting food impacts the environment, so teaching people that buying items with a smart list that they need and showing them ways how to store their leftovers is a better way to cut down food waste. Moreover, less wasting food help to have a natural ecosystem.
