Impact of Food Waste on the Environment

Food waste has an enormous impact on the global health of human populations and the environment

• 1.76 BILLION tons of total food production ends up wasted
• Of the edible portions of this food, 1.43 BILLION tons ends up in landfills
• The value of this waste to the farmers who produce it is $750 Billion, which is equivalent to the GDP of The Netherlands
• The amount of water used to produce this food would overfill Lake Erie
• Food waste is the number 1 component of material entering landfills, accounting for 40% of total landfill intake
• Landfills produce approximately one-third of all methane emissions in the US
• Food waste is the number 3 global contributor to carbon dioxide, behind China and the US