With 10 million tonnes going to waste each year, South Africa has a serious food wastage problem. And if you consider the fact that we produce around 31 million tonnes of food annually, that means that a third of the food we produce is going to waste – with an estimated value loss of R61.5 billion. 

These are all alarming numbers, but none more so than the knowledge that 70% of the wastage is largely made up of fruits, vegetables, and cereal. Even more concerning is the fact that 90% of the waste in our country ends up disposed of in landfills, and the food waste component of it contributes to the production of methane gas and carbon dioxide.

Food waste not only impacts the economy adversely, but that impact can potentially be felt at an environmental level too, as input materials like water and energy used to produce the food are also wasted. A WWF study also found that the energy wasted producing food that is not eaten in South Africa, is estimated to be enough to power the City of Johannesburg for about 16 weeks. 

We live in a country where many go to bed without anything to eat, and according to StatsSA findings, almost 23% of the population is affected by severe food insecurity. 

More has to be done to curb this problem as consumers, and applying the following tweaks to your habits will help:

• Check your fridge and cupboard to help identify what you already have.

• Avoid impulse buying, and getting things in bulk. 

• Try sticking to seasonal food where you can. 

• And try using appliances with cooling innovations that make your food last longer like Beko’s EverFresh+ Fridge Freezers.   

Similarly, unless a product was spoiled because of broken packaging, it should still be safe to consume. The sell-by date that you see indicated on products only refers to the last date a product should appear on a store shelf. 

By successfully cutting food loss and waste, we give ourselves a fighting chance to turn around the severe food insecurity felt by millions of people in this country.