We throw away food

In Norway, we throw away almost 400,000 tonnes of food a year. Some of this comes from the food industry. Many grocery stores throw away food that has expired.

But the consumers – you and me – are the ones who throw away the most. Over 42 kilos per person a year! This means that every eighth bag of food that we buy is thrown away!

We must therefore become better at limiting our purchases. Don’t buy more food than you actually need. And at least use up the leftovers you have – rather than throwing them in the garbage.

Food production accounts for 30 percent of the world’s greenhouse gas emissions. So it is important that we reduce food waste for reasons of economy, environment and the use of resources.

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Kastede matrester på søppeldynga
Kastede matrester på søppeldynga

Food waste

There are several ways that stores can reduce food waste. Preventable food waste is food that was once edible. Edible food can be discounted or given away to charities before the food approaches its expiry date or goes bad. Then the food can be eaten rather than thrown away.

Non-edible food waste is food that is not normally eaten; examples of this are old bread, food that tastes and smells stale and scraps from fish, meat and vegetables.

Dame som handler i en matbutikk
Dame som handler i en matbutikk

“Dumpster diving”

Many people think that we waste too much, and therefore they go look for food in the grocery stores’ bins.

They often find items that have just expired, or fruit and vegetables that have brown spots – but they believe that much of this food is still safe to eat. In social media, many students say that they save thousands by “dumpster diving”.

“Dumpster diving” is illegal in theory, because the shops own the rubbish until it is picked up by the waste management companies. Do you think this should be a criminal offense?

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Mann leter i søpla
Mann leter i søpla

Best before, often good after?

All food products are marked with a best-before date. Sometimes it says “best before”, while other times it says “use by”. This is about food safety.

Perishable foodstuffs are marked with a “use-by” date. There must also be a mention of how the food is to be stored. Perishable foods are, for example, dairy products, eggs, meat, fish and seafood, some vegetables and fruit.

Food marked with a “use-by” date can often be eaten after the set date, but it is the individual consumer’s responsibility to assess whether the food is edible.

Food marked with “best before”, on the other hand, can be both sold and eaten after the set date without risk of health damage. However, the quality may have deteriorated slightly.

In 2018, many food manufacturers changed their “best-before” labeling to “best before, often good after”. This was a move to limit food waste in Norway.

To provide further guidance to consumers, the food industry has developed a common symbol with the statement “Look, smell, taste”, to encourage the use of the senses on food that has passed its “best-before” date.

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Kvinne sjekker utløpsdato på en pakke med salat fra kjøleskapet

Food hygiene and food safety

The World Health Organization (WHO) works to ensure that people throughout the world have better health. Among other things, they have created five principles for good food hygiene:

  • ensure good cleaning
  • keep raw food and cooked food separate
  • cook thoroughly
  • keep the right temperature when storing
  • use safe raw foods and clean water

Safe foods

We have many laws and regulations on how food should be produced, bought and sold. We should be able to feel confident that we won’t get sick from what we eat and drink.

Food safety is therefore about food being safe and not containing bacteria, chemicals or other substances that make us sick.

If we eat food that is not safe, we can get food poisoning and become seriously ill. In the worst case, food poisoning can lead to death.

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Ung kvinne som er syk og sitter på baderomsgulvet lent over toalettskåla

What is food waste?

Sources:

Media Rights:

    1. Getty Images
    2. Getty Images
    3. Getty Images
    4. Getty Images
    5. Getty Images
    6. ClimateScience – Solve Climate Change – YouTube
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