◎魏國金
Up to half of all the food produced worldwide ends up going to waste due to poor harvesting, storage and transport methods as well as irresponsible retailer and consumer behavior, a report said.
全球生產的食物中多達半數最後流於浪費,因為不良的收成、儲藏與運輸方式,以及零售商、消費者不負責任的行為,一份報告指出。
The world produces about four billion metric tons of food a year but 1.2 to 2 billion metric tons is not eaten, the study by the London-based Institution of Mechanical Engineers said.
全球一年生產約40億公噸的食物,但12至20億公噸沒有被食用,總部設於倫敦的機械工程師學會研究指出。
In developed countries, efficient farming methods, transport and storage mean that most of the wastage occurs through retail and customer behavior.
在已開發國家,有效率的農作方式、運輸與儲存,意味著多數的浪費發生在零售與消費行為上。
Retailers produce 1.6 million metric tons of food waste a year because they reject crops of edible fruit and vegetables because they do not meet exacting size and appearance criteria, the report by the engineering society said.
零售商一年造成160萬公噸的食物浪費,因為他們拒絕大小與外觀不符合嚴格標準的可食用蔬果作物,該工程師學會的報告指出。
Of the food which does reach supermarket shelves, 30-50 percent of what is bought in developed countries is thrown away by customers, often due to poor understanding of "best before" and "use by" dates.