Coronavirus pandemic could increase food waste, experts say. How can we stop it?
The coronavirus is posing another threat: an increase in food waste, experts say.
As COVID-19 spreads, people have stockpiled food and other necessities for their homes. And concerns about the virus have prompted restaurants to close or scale back services, possibly leaving meals uneaten.
These are among the factors already contributing to a rise in food being thrown out, National Geographic reported Tuesday.
“We may see municipal curbside collection of food waste go up as more people eat in or take out,” Frank Franciosi of the U.S. Composting Council told the magazine.
How can you reduce food waste?
Limiting food waste can start at the grocery store, officials say.
“Buy only what you need and will use,” the Environmental Protection Agency said. “Buying in bulk only saves money if you are able to use the food before it spoils.”
At home, people can do meal preparations to make cooking easier or freeze foods that can’t be eaten before they expire, according to the EPA.
To know which ingredients are on hand, it’s also possible to organize cabinets or refrigerators so that similar foods are near each other, a Los Angeles Times cooking editor wrote.
In an Orlando Sentinel column, one professor calls for people to stop wasting food during the pandemic and says an economic downturn could make food insecurity worse.
It’s also possible some people will reduce waste anyway.
“Now that more consumers are stuck at home for longer stretches of time, with many experiencing economic hardship, the public is highly motivated to waste less food so that their groceries can last for a longer duration,” Forbes magazine reported.
Outside the house, entities are also taking steps toward keeping food out of the trash.
The nonprofit ReFED says food waste has come as a result of recent bulk food purchases and shutdowns at places where meals are traditionally served. It started a list of entities that are giving food to those in need, according to its website.
“In many cases, the food being wasted could have gone to the most vulnerable among us through recovery and distribution programs,” ReFED said.
In an effort to save produce from being thrown away, the company Imperfect Foods sells fruits and vegetables with appearances that don’t meet grocery store standards.
But with shakeups in the food service industry, farmers are uncertain about this year’s growing season, Ed O’Malley, the company’s vice president of supply and merchandising, told CNN.
This story was originally published March 31, 2020 at 4:58 PM with the headline "Coronavirus pandemic could increase food waste, experts say. How can we stop it?."
