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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2019. Reducing Impacts of Food Loss and Waste: Proceedings of a Workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/25396.
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Reducing Impacts of
Food Loss and Waste

PROCEEDINGS OF A WORKSHOP

Franklin Carrero-Martínez, Emi Kameyama, and
Paula Tarnapol Whitacre, Rapporteurs

Committee on Reducing Food Loss and Waste:
A Workshop on Impacts

Science and Technology for Sustainability Program

Policy and Global Affairs

images

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Washington, DC
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2019. Reducing Impacts of Food Loss and Waste: Proceedings of a Workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/25396.
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This activity was supported by contracts between the National Academy of Sciences and Bayer Crop Science, ConAgra Foods, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (Agreement Number: 59-0790-7-0016). Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication do not necessarily reflect the views of any organization or agency that provided support for the project.

International Standard Book Number-13: 978-0-309-49055-9
International Standard Book Number-10: 0-309-49055-3
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Suggested citation: National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2019. Reducing Impacts of Food Loss and Waste: Proceedings of a Workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: https://doi.org/10.17226/25396.

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2019. Reducing Impacts of Food Loss and Waste: Proceedings of a Workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/25396.
×

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The National Academy of Sciences was established in 1863 by an Act of Congress, signed by President Lincoln, as a private, nongovernmental institution to advise the nation on issues related to science and technology. Members are elected by their peers for outstanding contributions to research. Dr. Marcia McNutt is president.

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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2019. Reducing Impacts of Food Loss and Waste: Proceedings of a Workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/25396.
×

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Consensus Study Reports published by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine document the evidence-based consensus on the study’s statement of task by an authoring committee of experts. Reports typically include findings, conclusions, and recommendations based on information gathered by the committee and the committee’s deliberations. Each report has been subjected to a rigorous and independent peer-review process and it represents the position of the National Academies on the statement of task.

Proceedings published by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine chronicle the presentations and discussions at a workshop, symposium, or other event convened by the National Academies. The statements and opinions contained in proceedings are those of the participants and are not endorsed by other participants, the planning committee, or the National Academies.

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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2019. Reducing Impacts of Food Loss and Waste: Proceedings of a Workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/25396.
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PLANNING COMMITTEE ON REDUCING FOOD LOSS AND WASTE: A WORKSHOP ON IMPACTS

Ann Bartuska (Chair), Vice President for Land, Water, and Nature, Resources for the Future

Alison Grantham, Director for Food Systems Research and Development, Blue Apron

Lucyna Kurtyka, Senior Scientific Program Director, Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research

Prabhu Pingali (NAS), Professor, Charles H. Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management, and Founding Director, Tata-Cornell Agriculture and Nutrition Initiative, Cornell University

Brian Roe, Van Buren Professor, Department of Agricultural, Environmental and Development Economics, Ohio State University

Project Staff

Franklin A. Carrero-Martínez, Director, Science and Technology for Sustainability Program; Theme Lead, Global Policy and Development

Emi Kameyama, Associate Program Officer, Science and Technology for Sustainability Program

Nicole Lehmer, Senior Program Assistant, Science and Technology for Sustainability Program (until March 2019)

Consultant

Paula Tarnapol Whitacre, Principal, Full Circle Communications, LLC

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2019. Reducing Impacts of Food Loss and Waste: Proceedings of a Workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/25396.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2019. Reducing Impacts of Food Loss and Waste: Proceedings of a Workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/25396.
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Preface and Acknowledgments

Ensuring food security for all is a significant global sustainability challenge. It is estimated that almost 800 million people do not consume enough food to have healthy and productive lives. At the same time, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations estimated in 2011 that roughly one-third of food produced globally is lost or wasted.1 Similarly, in the United States, food loss and waste accounts for approximately 31 percent of the food supply at the retail and consumer levels and has significant impacts on food security, environmental conservation, and climate change. Thus, reducing food loss and waste is an important component of ensuring global food security.

A growing body of research illustrates that a reduction in food waste provides an opportunity to address a key food security challenge by increasing the efficiency of the food system. This increased efficiency could also provide environmental benefits and address climate change impacts. On October 17, 2018, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine’s Science and Technology for Sustainability program convened a public workshop to investigate impacts of reducing food loss and waste on farmers, food prices, food availability, and the environment. “Reducing Food Loss and Waste: Workshop on Impacts,” held in Washington, DC,

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1 Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. 2011. Global food losses and food waste: Extent, causes, and prevention. Rome, Italy: United Nations. Available at www.fao.org/fileadmin/user_upload/ags/publications/GFL_web.pdf.

Page viii Cite
Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2019. Reducing Impacts of Food Loss and Waste: Proceedings of a Workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/25396.
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was made possible by financial support from Bayer CropScience, ConAgra Foods, and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, whom we thank for their support.

This Proceedings of a Workshop was reviewed in draft form by individuals chosen for their diverse perspectives and technical expertise. The purpose of this independent review is to provide candid and critical comments that will assist the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in making each published proceedings as sound as possible and to ensure that it meets the institutional standards for quality, objectivity, evidence, and responsiveness to the charge. The review comments and draft manuscript remain confidential to protect the integrity of the process.

We thank the following individuals for their review of this proceedings: Bojana Bajzelj, Waste and Resources Action Programme; Darby Hoover, Natural Resources Defense Council; Lisa Kitinoja, Postharvest Education Foundation; and Rob Voss, International Food Policy Research Institute.

Although the reviewers listed above provided many constructive comments and suggestions, they were not asked to endorse the content of the proceedings nor did they see the final draft before its release. The review of this proceedings was overseen by Helen Jensen, Iowa State University. She was responsible for making certain that an independent examination of this proceedings was carried out in accordance with standards of the National Academies and that all review comments were carefully considered. Responsibility for the final content rests entirely with the rapporteurs and the National Academies.

Franklin A. Carrero-Martínez, Director

Science and Technology for Sustainability Program

Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2019. Reducing Impacts of Food Loss and Waste: Proceedings of a Workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/25396.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2019. Reducing Impacts of Food Loss and Waste: Proceedings of a Workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/25396.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2019. Reducing Impacts of Food Loss and Waste: Proceedings of a Workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/25396.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2019. Reducing Impacts of Food Loss and Waste: Proceedings of a Workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/25396.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2019. Reducing Impacts of Food Loss and Waste: Proceedings of a Workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/25396.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2019. Reducing Impacts of Food Loss and Waste: Proceedings of a Workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/25396.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2019. Reducing Impacts of Food Loss and Waste: Proceedings of a Workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/25396.
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Page viii Cite
Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2019. Reducing Impacts of Food Loss and Waste: Proceedings of a Workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/25396.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2019. Reducing Impacts of Food Loss and Waste: Proceedings of a Workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/25396.
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Suggested Citation:"Front Matter." National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. 2019. Reducing Impacts of Food Loss and Waste: Proceedings of a Workshop. Washington, DC: The National Academies Press. doi: 10.17226/25396.
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Even as malnutrition in the form of hunger and obesity affect the health and well-being of millions of people worldwide, a significant amount of food is lost or wasted every day, in every country, and at every stage in the supply chain from the farm to the household. According to a 2011 estimate by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), about one-third of food produced is lost or wasted globally. Beyond quantity estimates, however, less is known about the impacts on farmers, food prices, food availability, and environment of reducing food loss and waste.

On October 17, 2018, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine organized a workshop to examine key challenges that arise in reducing food loss and waste throughout the supply chain and discussed potential ways to address these challenges. This publication summarizes the presentations and discussions from the workshop.

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