While over half the food produced in Canada ends up in the landfill, meat products are the least-wasted of the food categories. Photo:
Canada Beef
The average Canadian household wastes 79 kilograms of food each year, estimates an organization looking to reduce food waste.
About 58 per cent of the food produced in Canada is lost to the landfill, estimates the National Zero Waste Council, which comprises representatives from the Canadian food industry, retail, food service and government. Wasted food makes up about 23 per cent of the total waste sent to landfills in Canada each year, according to an Environment Climate Change Canada study. Biodegradable waste, such as food, is the source of landfill methane, making efforts to mitigate food waste helpful on the environmental front as well.
Meat wasted less than other foods In Canada, there is significant waste of different types of foods. Meat is wasted less than any other food category, at six per cent. By weight, vegetables top the household food waste scale, coming in at 30 per cent, significantly higher than consumer estimates. Fruit follows at 15 per cent and leftovers at 13 per cent. Bread and bakery (nine per cent), dairy and eggs (seven per cent) round out the list.
Second Harvest awards action plan Second Harvest is a food waste mitigation initiative that aims to reduce hunger, supporting sustainable environmental initiatives through food redistribution, research, awareness and education.
Approximately 32 per cent or the equivalent of 11.2 million tonnes of edible food that was going to waste is now helping people in need. At a gala event on February 16, 2023, in Toronto, Second Harvest awarded Sobeys Canada with the Food Partner of the Year prize while Artic Co-op and Loblaw received the No-Hunger awards.
Food waste reductions in the retail sector Sobey’s Canada has implemented an innovative “OurPart” campaign to rescue food, prevent waste and help to redirect food surplus to communities across Canada. In this project, Sobeys offers Food Rescue tips on social media using #FoodRescue.ca on Twitter and with the FoodHero app.
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Sobey’s FoodHero app
Loblaw launched the Flashfood app which connects retailers to customers with offers of produce, meat, fish, bread, dairy and pantry staples nearing their best-before date. These items are often marked down by 50 per cent or more. Some items last for weeks, if frozen or cooked. Others have a day or two left.
Flashfood reportedly has diverted more than 13.5 million kilograms of food from landfills and saved users a collective $90 million.
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