The urgent need for governments to commit to food loss and waste

The author contends that reducing food loss and waste is a non-contentious solution to climate change and biodiversity loss, yet it remains under-adopted by governments. While some countries have set targets aligned with SDG 12.3, only 38 nations have included food loss and waste in their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC). The text highlights that agriculture drives 70% of terrestrial biodiversity loss and 30% of greenhouse gas emissions, with rotting food in landfills serving as the third largest cause of methane emissions.

• Agriculture has a severe impact on the environment, driving 70% of biodiversity loss on land and 50% in freshwater, while contributing approximately 30% of all greenhouse gas emissions.
• Food waste significantly contributes to global warming because the majority of it is sent to landfills, where it becomes the third largest source of methane emissions.
• There is a gap between general food waste targets and formal climate commitments; while countries representing about half the global population have set targets aligned with SDG 12.3, only 38 governments have included food loss and waste in their Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC).
• Several highly populated nations have not yet included food loss and waste in their climate commitments, including the United States, Brazil, India, Indonesia, Pakistan, Mexico, Canada, Nigeria, Bangladesh, Thailand, South Africa, and the Philippines.
• Food systems are critical for climate mitigation, with 80% of the mitigation potential of land-based solutions linked to them.

APA

Pearson, P. (2022). The urgent need for governments to commit to food loss and waste. WWF International. https://www.worldwildlife.org/news/perspectives/sustainability-works-hub/sustainability-works-index/the-urgent-need-for-governments-to-commit-to-food-loss-and-waste/

Chicago

Pearson, Pete. The urgent need for governments to commit to food loss and waste. WWF International, 2022. https://www.worldwildlife.org/news/perspectives/sustainability-works-hub/sustainability-works-index/the-urgent-need-for-governments-to-commit-to-food-loss-and-waste/.

Wikipedia

{{cite press release |last1=Pearson |first1=Pete |title=The urgent need for governments to commit to food loss and waste |publisher=WWF International |date=16 October 2022 |url=https://www.worldwildlife.org/news/perspectives/sustainability-works-hub/sustainability-works-index/the-urgent-need-for-governments-to-commit-to-food-loss-and-waste/ |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@misc{pearson2022urgent, author = {Pearson, Pete}, title = {{The urgent need for governments to commit to food loss and waste}}, publisher = {WWF International}, year = {2022}, month = oct, url = {https://www.worldwildlife.org/news/perspectives/sustainability-works-hub/sustainability-works-index/the-urgent-need-for-governments-to-commit-to-food-loss-and-waste/}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }