Essay Sample on Food Wastage: An Issue of Global Concern

Introduction

The process by which food is lost, for instance in households as a result of being unconsumed, for instance, is referred to as food wastage. In other terms, food wastage is the conscious or unconscious discarding of food or alternative (non-food) use of the food that is safe for human consumption. Countries and states should prevent, at all costs the total amount of food going to waste in various stages in order to come up with enough food to sustain its people against food insecurity alongside other negative impacts of food wastage. Rapid population growth across the world, according to the various statistical researches and analyses, has led to various issues that affect various societies in one way or the other (McClellan and Jennifer, pg. 5). One of the major determinants of the economy of a nation is the food security enhanced and able to sustain the citizens impacted by the control of food security. There is a huge impact, for instance, in Arizona, resulting from food loss and food wastage on the food security of the state. This follows the total amount of food wasted per person per year which is quite a lot.

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There are various activities or practices that individuals might Engage in which may lead to the degradation of food security wastage and loss in a certain community. Food security degradation in a country, for instance, might be impacted by various issues including under production, climate change which may lead to poor production of the food as well as the manner with which the available food or resources that leads to the availability of food are exploited and used. In order to ensure food security, various countries have come up with several measures controlling the rate at which the food is consumed in order to avoid careless activities like food wastage that eventually impact negatively to food security. Food wastage, described in the simplest way possible, is the misuse or losing of uneaten food in the various stages leading to the placement of the food on the table.

Food wastage or loss can therefore be described as the process of discarding unutilized or uneaten food. Food can be wasted in various ways depending on the stages of use. Food is wasted, therefore, during production, processing, packaging and distributing, retailing and finally during consumption. According to several studies, international food loss and waste levels to between a third and one-half of the total amount of food produced. Wastage and loss occur at all the mentioned stages of food value chain or supply chain. In low level income nations, most loss and waste of food occurs during the production process, while in the developed countries much food, almost 100 kilograms (220 lb.) per individual per annum is wasted and lost at the consumption stage.

The main aim of this Rogerian argumentation, therefore, is to draft a vivid description and arguments about food loss and its impact on the economy and the environment. Various perspectives are presented on the subject. This study places its prominence and focus on food loss and wastage in Arizona. Considering the fact that Arizona is a right to work state that enables every individual to work even without obtaining membership in labor organizations has made the state to grow in terms of population and therefore without a proper prevention of food loss and wastage, the state can suffer food insecurity issues. Such a huge population also has an impact on the total amount of food wasted per year thus calls for measures on the same. There are several perspectives of food wastage as there are parties that might feel that the rate of food wastage is not so high, and the rendered risks of food insecurity are low

The Audience’s Viewpoint: Causes of Food Waste

There are various viewpoints which are brought forward and can help the issue of food wastage in the state of Arizona. This letter therefore investigates various viewpoints brought forward checking their strengths and possible weaknesses. According to the article "Food: Too Good to Waste Challenge" by Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ), it is evident that there is too much food going to waste which indeed translates to the figure provided in the previous section indicating that, 25% of the total food purchased in most households is thrown away which brings the total amount to 300 pounds per person annually. Various suggestions are brought forward for example to specifically purchase the meals that are in accordance to the food plan of the households which will reduce the wastage rate. Another view point to avoid much wastage that might lead to food insecurity, according to the ADEQ is to come up with proper storage plans of the food to enable the food to stay fresh and edible for a longer period. These viewpoints indeed have strengths since when applied will help in various ways to reduce the total amount of food wasted resulting from un consumption for a long period thus rendered unfit for consumption as well as proper storage which will ensure a longer storage thus avoiding food wastage due to the food becoming inedible.

Lauren McFoy and Jason Depeal View Point

Lauren Mcfoy does not have a strong stand on the problem of food wastage because as restaurant director of In N' Out restaurant he should have been in the forefront of fighting to minimize the problem through formulation of policies and guidelines that should be followed throughout their chain of restaurants to minimize food wastage. They should be on the forefront of fighting to minimize food wastage not by implementing policies basing them on states that necessitate such but on the goodwill of wanting to conserve the environment and help people who are faced with hunger. Lauren Mcfoy and Jason Depeal do not see the importance of managing food waste because to them it seems the problem is insignificant and it has no potentiality of being disastrous if it is not properly addressed.it is important for them to understand the negative impact that the mismanagement of food wastes possess on the environment such as the reduction of it aesthetic value and poisoning of landfills and also an increase in nitrogen in the atmosphere which is harmful to human health. The economy is also affected because money that would be otherwise directed to another sector is pumped into finding ways to manage he food wastes which ought to be a personal responsibility of each and every individual including restaurant owners and managers.

Opposing Viewpoint

The impacts of not managing food wastes are enormous such as environmental degradation through the emission of methane gas by the wastes which in turn increases the amount of heat on the earth's surface increasing the risks of health-related problems and a reduction in the production of soil. Mismanaging food wastes also increases our use of industrial fertilizers which have very bad effects on the air we breathe, the water we drink, the soil, crops, the animals and our general health as human beings. Instead of throwing away food littering the environment, we can use them as an alternative to the toxic industrial fertilizers to make our crops more productive and reduce the risks they have on our health. There are many people facing hunger and starvation in the United States as statistics indicate it is therefore of importance to manage the leftover foods to help those who face such difficulties (The Pg.229.) Many people view food remains as those that need disposal as they have already been used and have served the purpose for the day and are no longer useful and that something fresh is needed but it is wrong to think in that manner because they still have the same nutritional value and there are various methods such as freezing that can preserve them for later use. Many people shop for things they already have even if it's not in plenty and end up wasting most of them because those that remain might be nearing expiry date and instead of exhausting them new ones are bought before the old ones are used.it is important to shop smart getting what is and is not needed in consideration to what is already in stock to avoid wasting food ("Progress is Slow on Reducing, Reusing and Recycling Fast Food Wastes." Though., Dotdash, 17th March 2017, https://www.thoughtco.com/slow-progress-recycling-fast-food-waste-1204147. Accessed on 27th March 2019).

Effects of Food Wastage

Food wastage has been a very invincible issue in the United States. Several states in America waste tons of food every year with no clear reason known as to why they waste food. There are an estimated 25 million Americans fighting hunger and in comparison to the pounds of food wasted in a year, it is sound to find solutions to address the problem of food wastage for the greater benefit of those who suffer from hunger (Meerburg pg.75). It is ideally not rational to judge some foods based on their shapes though we have different views on what we want and on the impact of imagery on us, it is best to seek alternative means of utilizing all the foods that are wasted in the damp every day. Food wastage not only has effects on us in view of those suffering from hunger but also it impacts negatively on the environment. When the food wastes are dumped in the ground they produce methane gas that is more potent in toxicity of trapping heat than carbon dioxide. This increases the carbon footprint on the earth's surface which has adverse health effects on us and the environment such as the reduction in the ozone layer and productivity of crops (Cole pg.110) The damping of food waste in dumpsites and other areas also reduce the aesthetic value of that particular region that the wastes have been dumped because it paints an ugly picture of that place with rodents and flies all over and the stench that comes from those places is unbearable.it is imperative to manage food wastage as individuals starting from our households because of the impacts it has on the environment and the importance of caring for others by offering the foods that we throw away to those who cannot afford meals and with that we will be working towards environmental sustainability and it shows care towards others and our environment. Knowing the impacts that the problem of food wastage has on the environment and our households at large are important as it goes a long way in making us be responsible for ourselves and others and also reduces the amount of waste in our localities and the country (Godfray Pg.812-818.). Though the problem of food wastage has been little known, it is definitely of utmost importance. With the changes in the environment and the reduction in the productivity of crops around the world given our dependency on agricultural produce for food. Food security depends on how we manage whatever we have currently and that includes what we take and that which remains after our meals. The food wastage issue has not been given the needed attention and publicity for the education of people on the extent to which we waste food and the impact it has on our health and the environment. Statistically, it is important for people to realize that the less we manage our food wastage the more problems we create for ourselves such as an increase in hunger and a reduction in the value of our environment and food production. The situation of environmental degradation accelerated by the emission of toxic gasses and wastes from industrial productions coupled with food wastes puts a huge toll on the environment reducing the capacity of the earth to support life. It is therefore important to manage the food wastes well so that we cannot continue putting a strain on the environment and show more individual responsibility for a more habitable environment (Kacira pg.45). The importance of managing food wastes also helps in financial management be...