Wasted food equals 3% of greenhouse emissions in UK, says new survey

A new report by environmental organization WWF which highlights the environmental impact of wasted food in the UK, found that food waste accounts for three percent of the country's greenhouse gas emissions; however according to video tutorial sites and environmental organizations there are a number of simple ways to reduce food wastage.

The report published jointly by the WWF and the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP), released March 22, was one of the first to investigate the water and carbon footprint of wasted household food in the UK.

The report found that the amount of water needed to produce food which is then wasted equals 6.2 billion cubic meters or the equivalent of six percent of the UK's water requirements; the 5.3 million tons of food wasted by UK households every year represents three percent of the UK's total domestic greenhouse gas emissions.

However the UK is not alone in wasting food: American organization the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimates that the United States generates 34 million tons of food waste per year.

The majority of this food is sent to landfills where, according to the EPA, as it decomposes it produces methane - a greenhouse gas 21 times more potent than carbon dioxide. The EPA also highlights the environmental benefits of recycling food waste as compost including - "improving soil health [and] increasing drought resistance."

Internationally applicable advice on reducing food wastage and how to recycle food scraps is available on several tutorial, environmental and governmental websites including:

Love Food Hate Waste
http://www.lovefoodhatewaste.com/

Videojug - How To Organize Your Refrigerator And Freezer In Your Kitchen So As Not To Waste Food
http://www.videojug.com/interview/how-to-organize-your-refrigerator-and-freezer-in-your-kitchen-so-as-not-to-waste-food

5min.com - How to Avoid Wasting Food
http://www.5min.com/Video/How-to-Avoid-Wasting-Food-516906007

ehow.com- How to Compost Food Waste
http://www.ehow.com/how_6565371_compost-food-waste.html

Environmental Protection Agency - Pack A Waste-Free lunch
http://www.epa.gov/osw/education/lunch.htm

For more information about the WWF in the UK and abroad see http://wwf.org.uk/   http://www.wwf.org/