REDUCiNG FOOD LOSS AND WASTE

The report outlines a 'Target-Measure-Act' approach to reduce global food loss and waste, identifying regional hotspots—such as consumption in high-income regions and handling/storage in low-income regions—and proposing 10 scaling interventions to accelerate progress toward SDG 12.3.

• A landmark 2011 FAO publication estimated that one-third of all food is lost or wasted between the farm and the plate, a figure the authors suggest is broadly correct based on subsequent research.
• Food loss and waste hotspots vary by region: high-income regions experience significant waste at the point of consumption, while low-income regions face higher losses during handling and storage.
• Reducing the current rate of food loss and waste by 50 percent by 2050 could lower greenhouse gas emissions by 1.5 gigatons of carbon dioxide equivalent (Gt CO2e) per year and avoid converting natural ecosystems the size of Argentina into agricultural land.
• The annual global market value of food that is lost and wasted is estimated at $940 billion.
• Food loss and waste is driven by 15 underlying drivers categorized as technological (e.g., poor infrastructure), managerial (e.g., poor forecasting), behavioral (e.g., social norms), and structural (e.g., policies and financing).
• The report recommends a 'Target-Measure-Act' approach: adopting a 50 percent reduction target by 2030, quantifying loss and waste to identify hotspots, and implementing context-specific interventions.
• Beef, dairy, and rice are identified as the primary greenhouse gas (GHG) hotspots of food loss and waste due to their high carbon footprints.
• As of early 2019, 50 percent of the world's population lives in a country that has set an explicit, public target aligned with SDG 12.3, and 32 of the world's 50 largest food companies have set consistent targets.
• The report proposes 10 scaling interventions, including developing national strategies, creating public-private partnerships, launching a '10x20x30' supply chain initiative, and shifting consumer social norms.
• There is a significant data deficit in food loss and waste quantification; only countries representing 12 percent of the world's population currently measure these levels within their borders.

APA

FLANAGAN, K., ROBERTSON, K., & HANSON, C. (2019). REDUCiNG FOOD LOSS AND WASTE. World Resources Institute. https://files.wri.org/d8/s3fs-public/reducing-food-loss-waste-global-action-agenda_1.pdf

Chicago

FLANAGAN, KATIE, KAI ROBERTSON, and CRAIG HANSON. REDUCiNG FOOD LOSS AND WASTE. World Resources Institute, 2019. https://files.wri.org/d8/s3fs-public/reducing-food-loss-waste-global-action-agenda_1.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=FLANAGAN |first1=KATIE |last2=ROBERTSON |first2=KAI |last3=HANSON |first3=CRAIG |title=REDUCiNG FOOD LOSS AND WASTE |publisher=World Resources Institute |date=2019 |url=https://files.wri.org/d8/s3fs-public/reducing-food-loss-waste-global-action-agenda_1.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{flanagan2019reducing, author = {FLANAGAN, KATIE and ROBERTSON, KAI and HANSON, CRAIG}, title = {{REDUCiNG FOOD LOSS AND WASTE}}, institution = {World Resources Institute}, year = {2019}, url = {https://files.wri.org/d8/s3fs-public/reducing-food-loss-waste-global-action-agenda_1.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }