As the world population grows, so will demand for food. To try to feed the rising population, agricultural production has increased globally by almost 300 percent over the past 50 years.

At the same time, according to the latest data released by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in its 2023 State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World report, an estimated average 735 million people suffer from hunger or malnutrition in the world, and large amount of edible food is lost or wasted.

Food is lost and wasted along the whole food value chain - from production through handling, transportation, storage, and distribution, and then finally at consumption. Household habits account for nearly 570 million tonnes of food wasted each year globally, according to the United Nations Environmental Programme data. In personal terms, each of us, on average, wastes around 74 kg of food every year.

Despite campaigns to raise awareness and educate people about the issue and the efforts to tackle it, the volumes of food discarded in households remain high.

To empower them, FAO designed a practical guide for consumers, providing easy-to-implement tips and recommendations for preventing food waste. The guide supports everyone along the journey from buying to consuming food.