We are on the right track, our food waste has decreased by a quarter

By: STA Date: 2022. 09. 29. 11:55

Between 2016 and 2021, food waste in households decreased by 24%, it was revealed during the third waste assessment of the National Food Chain Safety Office (Nébih). According to the results of the measurement carried out with the participation of around 300 households, 25.2 kg of food per person is unnecessarily thrown in the garbage every year, and the top list of the most frequently wasted food is still led by food scraps.

(Photo: Pixabay)

Since 2016, the Nébih Maradék sénl program has been monitoring the food waste of the Hungarian population. So far, the researchers have measured solid and liquid food waste in households based on EU methodology 3 times, in 2016, 2019 and 2021. According to the first data from 2016, Hungarians “produced” 65.5 kg of food waste per person per year, about half of which, 33.1 kg, was actually wasted. Waste, i.e. the amount of food thrown out unnecessarily, decreased to 31.9 kg by 2019, and the latest figure is 25.2 kg.

The measurements show an improving trend

We have achieved a particularly spectacular result with bakery products: in 5 years, we have managed to reduce the annual amount of wasted bread, muffins and buns by 3.1 kg per person, but we also deal with ready meals much more sparingly, in this category the reduction is 2.6 kg/person/year volt. Despite the recent development, the top list of the most frequently wasted food is still led by food scraps (10.7 kg/person/year). This is followed by fresh vegetables and fruits (4.5 kg/capita/year), as well as bread and other baked goods (3.4 kg/capita/year), but also a large amount of dairy products (2.4 kg/capita/year ) goes in the trash. September 29 is the international day of awareness of food loss and waste, so it is particularly gratifying that, based on surveys, Hungarians are increasingly aware of food. However, the total food waste is still huge, 245,000 tons per year. An additional 450,000 people could live comfortably for a year from the food purchased unnecessarily, assuming 3 generous meals a day. This is also why continuous education is extremely important, in which the interfaces of Nébih’s No Left Behind program provide effective help. The latest collection of waste prevention tips is now available on the program’s website: https://maradeknelkul.hu/2022/09/28/apro-lepesekkel-az-elelmiszerpazarlas-csokkenteseert/

Additional points of interest

• Globally, household food waste is responsible for 50-60% of food loss in the entire food chain. That is why the UN’s sustainability goals include halving household food waste by 2030.
• The research revealed that more and more people are concerned about the environmentally friendly way of disposing of food waste: in 5 years, the proportion of waste going to composting increased by almost 7%.
• With current food prices, an average Hungarian citizen wastes HUF 35,000 worth of food every year. If we had not changed our consumer habits, that is, if we had kept the 2016 waste level, then this amount would be HUF 44,000. So we saved an average of HUF 9,000 per person through more conscious shopping, food preparation and storage.

The detailed research summary can be downloaded from the following link: https://portal.nebih.gov.hu/documents/10182/21442/Kutatasi+osszefoggalo_Haztartasi+elelmiszerhulladak+felmeres+2021.pdf/

Nébih