A study from FAO revealed that about one-third of all food produced worldwide gets lost or wasted in the food production and consumption systems, amounting to 1.3 billion tonnes. In industrialized nations, retailers and consumers discard around 300 million tonnes that is fit for consumption, around half of the total food squandered in these regions. This is more than the total net food production of Sub-Saharan Africa and would be sufficient to feed the estimated 900 million people hungry in the world. 

The downside: food waste is a massive global problem that has negative humanitarian, environmental and financial implications.

The upside: with relative ease and a few simple changes to our habits, we can significantly shift this paradigm.

Many regional campaigns have recently been launched, echoing to the challenge of food waste at the national level and in major sectors, including hotels, restaurants, supermarkets, and households. Perhaps surprisingly, one-third of all unused food in developed countries is wasted by households.

Think.Eat.Save of the Save Food Initiative, is a partnership between UNEP and FAO contributing to the Sustainable Food Systems Programme of the 10 Year Framework of Programmes on Sustainable Consumption and Production (10YFP), also known as the One Planet Network. 

The initiative is in support of the UN Secretary-General’s Zero Hunger Challenge, which seeks to add its authority and voice to these efforts in order to galvanize widespread global, regional and national actions, catalyze more sectors of society to be aware and to act, including through exchange of inspiring ideas and projects between those players already involved and new ones that are likely to come on board.

We offer the Think.Eat.Save website as a portal to showcase these ideas to provide a one-stop-shop for news and resources, and to launch our call for everyone to take action on this global concern.