Food loss and waste -ACF-FR comments on HLPE report
First of all, we would like to thanks the HLPE for this Draft zero on such a complex subject which is also a central topic for food security and nutrition. Linking Food Loss and Waste to the diversity of food systems is important to us and we are welcoming the work done by the HPLE team.
We were glad to notice that the report a underlines that:
- Losses and waste are not evenly distributed around the world. Producer countries and net food exporters have a proportionately higher losses volume and high-income countries, which consume more food, have a high proportion of food wasted.
- “food wasted while people go hungry is first of all sign of a global food system which does not fulfil its function; whatever the reason. It is a sign and symbol of inefficiency and inequity”.
- “It would also allow to better understand who would gain or loose to reduce them, which is key to design appropriate policies and incentives. At global level some analysis have highlighted the fact that losses and waste contribute to higher demand and thus to higher prices.”
- Changes in legislation and business behavior towards more sustainable food production and consumption will be necessary to reduce waste
- Reducing food losses and waste would also reduce the pressure on natural resources
- Women’s role to reduce FLW is of the utmost importance
- The proposition to better integrate food chains and food systems perspectives in any food security and nutrition and agricultural strategy or action.
Nevertheless, we would like to bring up some comments and make propositions
- In all the document; we propose to replace food security by “food and nutrition security” to enlight the fact that nutrition and the fight against malnutrition is a key objective of the international bodies and policies.
- To insist in the introduction that losses and waste are not evenly distributed around the world, (inequity)
- food loss is a key problem for the developing countries (and investments should focus on reduction of food loos in the developing countries through better production, storage and processing , whereas food waste is mainly due to the northern countries (net food exporters)
- recall that the food loss and waste is also an urgent matter because we will need to feed 9 billion people by 2050.
- p14) the distinction between local system and industrialized system is questionable in the given context: we recommend to insist more on the fact that family farming and small holders farmers are not massively contributing to food waste. The question is not only related to carbon print but to the efficiency of the food system to make food available and accessible for consumers. Local food systems have a role to play and local markets for the family farmers should be supported. The nutritional impact will depend on the availability of nutritious foods on the market, the relative prices of nutritious foods and the preferences of the family members who purchase the food. When you quote: “Advocates of local systems also pretend that they generate less FLW. There again it very much depends, on products and contexts.” If you keep this sentence, Please elaborate and mention in which context local food systems generate less FLW.
- P15 could you mention the number of food insecure people in the world and the number of those suffering from malnutrition.
- Figure 2 p 15 regarding the list of the countries in the graph, do you have any figures for sahelian countries, we could guess that the figures would be different and that per capita consumption would no progress according to the same patterns;
- Food safety issues should be reinforced since they are very connected to food storage. Storage is a crucial phase of the food supply chain and could lead to health problems. ACF and CIRAD are currently implementing a study on the potential negative impacts of agricultural project on nutrition. Among the negative impacts of food systems on nutrition, the contamination of Aflatoxins during grain storage pose one of the world’s most significant food safety risks. Aflatoxins is a fungal toxin that contaminates grains and other crops (maize and groundnuts in particular), mainly in developing countries. Aflatoxins is recognized to be highly toxic, even at very low levels. Alfatoxin has proved to favor cancer, illness, malnutrition and death. ACF recommend that the HLPE insist on the potential negative impacts of food processing and storage practices on nutrition (aflatoxin being only an example among others). ACF propose that the report support the design of strategies that control aflatoxin-related risks in the field, post-harvest conditions, and the diet or at least mention the propositions done on this subject (Cf SUN Movement). More generally, the design of food storage policy should be done taking in mind the possible negative impacts on health and nutrition.
Peggy Pascal